Change of Fate
by lockiesaurus
Summary: A story to tell what would be if Seiko was one of the five to survive. A Naomi x Seiko focusing story, with some Ayushiki fluff in the background. Rated T for every-so-often foul language, slight gore, etc.!
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER: _I DO NOT OWN CORPSE PARTY NOR ANY CHARACTERS! THEY ALL BELONG TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS!_**

Where was she?

Naomi's mind was very much only a blur, memories of the past hour, maybe, completely oblivious to her. It was like fighting your way through a mist, unfortunately with no proper finds so far. Shaking her head, the brunette girl stood up shakily. She found herself unceremoniously sprawled on the floor, like she was asleep, which was far too much of a vulnerable position at this point. What had she been thinking! The evil spirits of this school only waited for someone as stupid as her, that decided it was a good idea to nap in the middle of the hallway.

Keeping herself steady by stretching out on hand, she managed to find a wall that supported her for now. She coughed once or twice, sighing. "... Where am I?" she asked herself, voice quiet and slightly hoarse. Looking around, she managed to find herself before the girl's lavatory. She run her fingers over the doors, feeling like crying. "Seiko..." she could clearly remember her best friend entering the room in the very beginning.

If she recalled correctly, through her fading memory, to apply some medicine. "Seiko!" she called, louder this time, hoping to find the brunette somewhere close by. She had to apologize. Yes. She could remember some things, like what place this was, but fresh in her mind was also a fight she had with Seiko.

A fight that left her alone. Scared. Angry. She couldn't take it. She remembered trailing through the endless corridors, before what felt like going unconscious. Maybe she did? But she was closer to the infirmary, she could swear that she was, and this was a completely different floor. Shaking her head, she decided to look inside the lavatory, now that she was there. Just in case something important was in there. Quite honestly, she felt very much drawn inside, oddly enough. Unable to help it, she pulled the door open and walked inside. "Hello?"

Nothing.

Swallowing, or more gulping, she could feel all her hair stand on end. There was something definitely wrong with this place, even if she couldn't pin-point it yet. An odd sound came from one of the stalls, but she couldn't tell which one. Carefully, she stumbled to the closest one, trying to open it. It didn't even budge, against her never ending struggles.

Giving up, she moved to the next one in turn. Didn't work, either, for whatever reason. The doors felt like they were sealed close, and perhaps she didn't want to see what was behind them anyway. Yeah, she probably didn't, knowing Heavenly Host.

The middle one, then. Hopefully it will open, unlike all the others, since the strange noise seemed to be much louder when she stood before that one. With a deep breath, she pulled the door open in one slow movement, revealing in fact a very horrendous image that she wished would just be a dream. Her best friend now hang in the stall by a rope that reached from a bar above the toilets. Her eyes were widened, giving the impression of empty. There was some blood oozing from around the noose that held her up, and saliva stained her chin and left a few specks on the floor.

A sudden wave of fear and panic entered her, and she screamed, cupping her head with her hands, placing them at either side. "SEIKO!"

Naomi turned around with a furious sob, almost falling to her knees. What just happened? It couldn't be! It couldn't! It didn't! Her friend couldn't be dead... Seiko had promised her. She promised her that they would be back home together soon. That they'll return safely. Together. And now? Now she _hanged _herself? It was all her fault! If she hadn't snapped at her like that, maybe this accident wouldn't come to be. "Why? WHY?!" she shrieked to no-one, trying to find an excuse for doing something like that. She found none other than herself.

"No!" she half-groaned, half-sobbed, quite loudly too. Like the scream she had released beforehand. "NO!" she repeated, like she did with her inquire, tears lazily rolling down her cheeks, chased quickly by fresh ones.

"Na... o... mi..." came a gurgling sound from behind. It couldn't be, could it?

To confirm her suspicions, Naomi turned around slowly, afraid that maybe it was a ghost. Maybe it would be better if it was. If Seiko was dead, why should she be living? There was no point now. Now clear reason for her to keep alive. No-one to give her determination for survival. She was alone, and she wouldn't be able to take this all.

What if it was indeed a ghost, or her imagination? She couldn't dare to look at Seiko again. Her painful expression. The rope tugging at her neck roughly. The emptiness of her eyes... The paleness of her skin, as life slowly but successfully was drained away from her. The only movement she was performing before was a relaxed rock back and forth, which was over creepy, and a harsh punch as well.

"Seiko! Y-you're alive?!" she asked, voice softening as she saw the girl lightly pawing at her neck, obviously trying to fight against the noose. Where did her sudden determination come from? "Hold on, I'll get you down!" she promised, louder to make sure the girl could hear. At first, she stood up on her tiptoes and tried to get a grip on the rope. A hack and gurgle made her stumble back, seeing that she only hurt her further by her choice. _Stupid, stupid, stupid! You're hurting her! _she thought, stepping closer again.

This time she immediately headed for untying the knot at the back of Seiko's neck, but that only resulted in it digging deeper into her smooth skin, causing it to bleed. As Naomi stepped away again in horror, Seiko managed to get her hands soaked in her very own blood by trying to loosen the noose herself. "N-no! Watch Seiko, I'll get you down by myself. Y-you just... Don't leave me, please..." she begged softly, contemplating her options.

She could used the bucket that she saw outside the bathroom. Yet, after some quick thinking, she decided against that. It looked like it laid there for ages, with rusty orange-brown color to it. From that observation, it wasn't hard to tell that if she tried, it would easily break under her own and Seiko's weight. Seiko's flailing increased as she found it harder and harder to breathe, which worried Naomi endlessly. "I'll save you, I promise!"

Without much of thought, she sprang forwards and grabbed her legs, forcing them to calm by holding them with her hands. Standing a little taller, she could feel Seiko relax by a noticeable amount as she could easily resume to breathing once more. The noose was still around her neck, but definitely not digging so much as before. Naomi could hear hacks, gurgles and coughs coming from about as Seiko got a fresh, new breath of the air, hungrily sucking it in through her nose and mouth. Her amber eyes had returned to their normal size now, as she calmed down, realizing that she was once again safe. All thanks to her dear little Naomi.

"..."

Naomi, although overwhelmed with joy at the idea of her friend being able to catch her breath, avoiding strangulation by a slim second or two, at the most, reached up, tracing her hands up her shoulders towards her neck. Unbeknownst of the smile that is plastered on her friend's face, her perverted nature returning in a flash. Silently, she worked blindly to untie the rope, eventually succeeding.

As Seiko loudly suck in a breath, Naomi brought her to a wall piggyback style, before letting her sit down and get back to normal. It took several minutes, perhaps an hour? The hacks and coughs ceased, as the brunette finally recovered, looking at Naomi who all this time sat by her side, brown gaze watching over her with concern. Despite what she had done to her, Seiko couldn't possibly be mad. No, definitely not. Not at Naomi, despite what happened. They heard about 'The Darkening' from a ghost, beforehand, and she figured out that that was what happened.

"..."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah..." Seiko trailed off, looking down at her hands. She didn't understand why perfectly, but she was still a little uncertain about the whole thing, even if she was willing to forgive Naomi on the spot.

"Thank you, by the way. I-I don't know what I would do, or be, if you didn't come..." she added quietly, twiddling with her thumbs. Naomi sighed, shaking her head. "I don't even want to go that way. I'm glad you're safe though."

Carefully, she leaned in, and with the use of her sleeve, wiped some saliva that stained Seiko's chin, smiling at the girl widely. For a moment, as she swiped her sleeve over her face, nothing much happened, yet after a moment she jumped away. "SEIKO!"

The brunette was laughing, getting a hold onto her stomach. Indeed, her personality was back in track, for seconds ago, she managed to get quite a good view of Naomi's bust, and unable to resist, grabbed it with a coo of delight. "Hmm? You didn't like that Naomi?" she asked softly, faking a sad expression. "I guess I'll just have to get you used to it..."

"Don't you dare!" Naomi wailed in protest, shaking her head hurriedly and she inched backwards to make a proper amount of distance between them, just in case Seiko decided to put her plan into life. "Aw, but Naomi, how will you get used to it then?"

"I don't want to get used to anything!"

"Anything, you say?" Seiko mused, trying to stand up. They couldn't remain in one spot for too long. She didn't trust this place one bit, and she wouldn't want to think about what she would do if she lost Naomi to this cursed place. She couldn't do that. "Well, you got to get that lovely ass o' your's movin' 'cause I ain't staying here any longer than I need to!" she proclaimed, heading towards the exit on shaky legs, remaining slightly lightheaded.

Rolling her eyes, Naomi lifted herself up and trailed after the girl, offering her help, which was quickly declined due to Seiko's worry of putting pressure on her with the bad ankle she got when they got here. "Ooh look, a little paper-y thingie!" she could hear the teen call brightly as she headed towards a wall. What got her so happy? "Wait up!" Naomi called, although her plea was ignored, as Seiko instead began reading out loud. "I hate you... I hope you die! I hope you die and rot in this place! I hope that your death will be long and painful! Like mine... It's all because of you... I hate you..."

The inscription made Seiko frown, stepping back. "Hmm... That gal isn't too optimistic, dontcha think?" she chuckled, shaking her head, like she was completely untouched by everything. "Yeah..."

"Anyways, we should go, now shouldn't we?" Naomi nodded in agreement, catching up to her side. She looked over at the girl, mood completely set off. She could visibly see the mark that the noose left around Seiko's neck, and the cuts were clearly visible as well. It was painful to look at, honestly. "Hey, now. You don't need to stare. You know perfectly well you can just ask, and I'll show you everythin'!" Seiko piped, making Naomi sigh, although giggle afterwards.

"...? D-did you hear that?" what sounded like a scream rang through the hallway, causing the due to haul to an immediate stop. "Huh... Odd. It sounded like..."

"Yui-sensei? Why was she screaming? W-we have to go, come on Seiko! HURRY!"


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: _I DO NOT OWN CORPSE PARTY NOR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS! THEY ALL BELONG TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS!_**

After the hanging incident, Seiko was weakened, leaving her stamina much worse than it was before. Being an energetic being, she didn't mind sports, especially those like running. If she thought about it a little more, though, she mainly ran about whenever chasing someone, most often Naomi, actually, trying to get a good squeeze of this and that, despite her friend's clear protest.

"Nao... mi... I can't... I can't run... much more..." she panted, feeling her hurt neck painfully burn, closing up on her so she once again couldn't breathe. Naomi halted for a moment, eyes clouding with anxiety. "Are you sure? It can't be far away, I promise..." she explained, pointing to a class at the end of the hallway. Perhaps, if she could run before Seiko, to see what happened to Ms. Yui, leaving her to catch up, then they could... _No! You left her alone once, and just see what came out of it!_ she thought, clenching her fists.

"Naomi... I can't..." Seiko confirmed, shaking her head as she took a grip on her neck, coughing a little. "That's okay. I-I understand. I shouldn't try to push you... I'm sorry." Naomi murmured, hanging her head in shame for a moment.

Looking back, she waited for another scream. Another sign that their teacher was present, that it wasn't a trick to the mind. What if it was a trap? It could be, and then they wouldn't be able to escape. She couldn't leave Seiko behind, if that happened, so most likely they would both just die. And they couldn't, she wouldn't let that happen. "How about we walk, then?" she offered finally, glancing over her shoulder. Getting a nod from Seiko, they began to more slowly move towards the end of the hallway, their pace a little unsteady, decreasing and increasing in speed as they went along.

As they reached the room, Naomi pressed her ear onto the door, trying to catch a sound, or some sign of a presence. Seiko, in turn, stood leaning against a wall only presumably half a meter away, knowing very well keeping distance at this point could result in the worst. "I don't hear anything." she heard the short-haired girl say, with perhaps a little disappointment.

"I really thought Yui-sensei might be in there..." Naomi decided to explain, though wasn't asked about anything at this stage. Sometimes it did appear that their bond was a little stronger than it actually was, making them look like they could read their minds. Though, knowing the different actions Seiko performed, taking a trip into her brain wouldn't be the smartest of moves. "How are you keeping up?"

Seiko shrugged, looking over at her friend with a smile. "I've been better." she wanted to add a few comments, but decided against it just yet. Naomi was under a lot of stress right now, probably, with her injury and all. "But I'll live! Anyways, wanna go inside? I mean maybe Yui-sensei is inside but like really quiet. Like... like a monster!" Seiko exclaimed, wiggling her fingers suggestively, taking a weak attempt to scare her. It was not very good, but she didn't wish to actually frighten her.

"Seiko! Don't be silly." Naomi instructed her with in a pout, before trying to open up the classroom. "Huh... It's closed." certainly, the doors were affixed to the wall like only a decoration, and it would be a waste of time to struggle with them further. "Oh. Then let's just keep going, shall we? No time to waste! Unless, you wanna take a break?" Seiko giggled, winking in the brunette's direction, causing her to stare for a moment before sighing loudly. "Can you calm down, for Heaven's sake?!"

Pouting, Seiko cocked her head. "I would rather for these things' sake, but whatever you say!" she agreed cheerfully, pointing at Naomi's bust which in turn caused her to groan loudly, putting on her usual demeanor, to the inwardly satisfaction of Naomi, who after her exclaim had started to walk off with a slight stomp in her step, while Seiko followed her lead, a skipping a little on the way.

* * *

Ayumi Shinozaki, the class representative of 2-9 woke up a while ago in a building of a creepy appearance and chocking atmosphere, causing her to immediately feel fear twisting her insides. Along with her was Yoshiki Kishinuma, a delinquent from her very own class, that often irritated her. Every word, every action he took was purely wrong, in her mind. She couldn't help thinking so, though. He was the complete opposite of her, and the attitude he kept up was utterly disgusting.

If she really had to be stuck in a place like that, she would much more prefer Satoshi, who was always caring and cute, and would certainly protect her. He was a good student, and a handsome teenager, with short brown hair that perfectly framed his face. And then there was Yoshiki, with his bleached blonde (a school break, too) hair, ruffled in every direction like some kind of one big, light-colored mishap. Satoshi had warm brown eyes, that always brought out the best in her, while Yoshiki had cold, grey ones that wouldn't comfort anyone or anything.

"Shinozaki?"

She could easily go on and on, and on about those differences that made her partner a lost cause, and Satoshi an ideal, however she promised herself to remain sharp. There was something very much wrong about this place, and she was determined to find out what. She couldn't help but wonder about Satoshi, though. How was he? Was he even still alive? Who was he stuck with? Probably Nakashima. Oh, how she hated that girl sometimes! She just couldn't keep away from Satoshi.

Always she was a burden, and now, in this place, she probably continued being so. What surprised her the most, it seemed that was only her opinion. Everyone loved Naomi. Because she was perfect and nice and just ugh! She should be alone! Or maybe with Yuka, or that best friend of her's. Just out of her parade, that's all she asked for.

"Shinozaki?" Yoshiki repeated himself, louder this time. That easily snapped her out of her thoughts, and she was about to bitterly reply to him, about how rude he was to interrupt her thoughts, since she might have been taking care thinking up a plan of escape, or figuring out the mystery of the school they found themselves in. She noticed that he stopped, and his eyes were widened slightly.

Noting that, she stepped back to return to his side once more, following his gaze. Ahead of them stood a blue-glowing child. A boy, to be exact. His small figure and young face made it easy to assume he was around eight years of age. He had darker hair, she decided after closer inspection, slightly ruffled with matching, empty eyes. He wore a plain sweater and shorts, reaching down his thighs. With that he had only a pair of usual shoes and socks, nothing out of ordinary, despite everything having a transparent and blue hue to it.

There was blood coming from his mouth, and his sweater was torn, showing cuts here and there. The scariest injury of all though, was a large gash running from the bottom of his chest, down his stomach, which looked like a deathly wound. Was he... a ghost? "Don't look into his eyes!" Ayumi all of a sudden instructed, covering her mouth with her hands. Where did that come from? She didn't know anything about that boy!

Yoshiki, however, didn't argue, like always and turned his attention to the wall of the hallway. "We should leave Shinozaki. Come on!" he urged her, taking the girl's hand. The action caused her to visibly blush, her cheeks turning a hue of a red rose. "Yosh-" she began to argue, only to break off as he pulled at her arm, already waving through the hallway, taking one turn after another as he tried to get away from the ghost. Unknown to them, having the ghostly figure followed after them mechanically, repeating over and over in a strangely hoarse, stuttering voice, like he had trouble pronouncing each word:

"Gihh it back..."

* * *

Satoshi woke up with a start a while ago, from that point on, he was a little busy in an effort to find his younger sister, Yuka, an available bathroom to use. Every bathroom they had looked into so far was either sealed, like nothing more than a decoration affixed onto the building, like the desks, chairs and multiple other items that were scattered around the building, which build an uncomfortable atmosphere. Standing before a girl's lavatory, he sighed, looking towards the door.

"Yuka? You done in there?" he called.

The young girl walked out, her head hanging, a blush apparent on her face as she swallowed. "I couldn't go." she said sadly, flushing a darker pink. Why couldn't she just relief herself? It was definitely going to be a longer time here, since each second seemed to lengthen as they had continued on. Yuka felt ready to explode, biting back tears as she laid a hand on her abdomen, averting her gaze down on it with a scornful expression.

"...?" Satoshi mused, cocking his head. Signalling for her to wait, he peeked inside. Certainly, before the stalls, was a large hole like many rooms had, prohibiting any passage whatsoever. "Yeah... I guess we'll just have to keep looking." he sighed, waiting for her to get a hold on his hand once again, squeezing delicately to let him know that she was ready to go on, gulping. She would look around, having her senses pricked up in fear. The whole scary, murderous place wasn't her cup of tea and she felt nauseous, along with the strong pain from her bladder. Hopefully, they'll be safe soon. Not to mention, they'll meet up with everyone else.

Yuka had only known them people for a short amount of time, mainly hearing stories of the seven, and never met them personally. Until the very day, and yet she was very much concerned for the group, praying that none had to be left alone. Nor that any died, which unfortunate crossed her mind, seeing the amount of corpses that were laying around. Close to tears, she closed her eyes, shuffling behind Satoshi as he gently pulled her on. She sighed quietly, looking around at different doors and corpses they left. Every so often, her brother would bend beside them, reading the tag, and giving away a silent prayer for those poor souls that died in the spot.

They eventually found a ghost too, fortunately neither a red spirit nor one of those three murderous children that wondered the halls. However, it was a spirit, tinted with blue. Yuka smiled, remembering that they've been told the basic rule: red spirits are bad, blue spirits are good unless they have a visual appearance. That those three kids should be, at all costs, avoided.

"H-hello..." she said to the being, rocking on her feet as she waited for a reply.

"Do not... enter the infirmary... Please... You have to remain alive... Find a way out of this place." the spirit ignored the girl, moving on with it's message, like it was in a hurry. It's voice was breaking, and although it was unknown to her why, she could take a simple guess with what they learned about the victims. Some were chocked to death, and because of that took breaks between words and sounded like they were still fighting for their lives pitifully.

"Do not enter... the infirmary... she'll catch you..." the blue spirit repeated, while Satoshi blinked a few times at it, pulling Yuka back. "Who? Why? What do you mean?" but there was no point in further questioning, for whatever the spirit was, it already disappeared, leaving the pair confused slightly, yet trusting it enough to avoid the infirmary's embrace, off to find an available for use bathroom for Yuka.

_Quick Author's note: _I'm glad those of you who are reading so far enjoyed the story! I'm sorry if Noami's and Seiko's part was a little short in comprising to the others, but I had to introduce the other characters too. I'll try to update perhaps later on in the day, if I can. I don't really update at a specific time, just randomly, depending when I get what chapter done /w\ If everyone runs smoothly, another chapter should be cooked up for later. See ya then!


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: _I DO NOT OWN CORPSE PARTY NOR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS! THEY ALL BELONG TO THEIR RIGHTFUL OWNERS!_**

Although the task was proved difficult, Seiko managed to get her chest from continuing to burn from the earlier run, now happily skipping along with Naomi, who unfortunately did not share her cheery attitude, walking at a normal pace, each stride determined as she headed around the school building, taking her friend for further investigation. "Seiko's tired!" the amber-eyed girl wailed, wrapping her arms around Naomi's neck from behind her. Jolting in genuine surprise, she sighed, swatting at Seiko's hands to let her go as they began to wonder downwards, causing their owner to give away a purr of delight.

"Seiko! Alright. We'll find something." Naomi wriggled from the shorter girl's grasp, scoffing. The first place to snap into mind was the infirmary, with it's beds and such that could bring them relief for walking so long. But Naomi was in there, and knew what would happen if they stayed there for too long. She wouldn't be able to repeat what she had done again, and doubted Seiko would either. Then there was the Science Lab, but she still didn't have the key to the room.

She could go to an empty classroom, or even just stay in the hallway. The hallway sounded most reasonable, in case the classroom doors turn out to close behind them and seal themselves so they wouldn't be able to get out. That would be horrid, and she didn't want that to happen.

"Maybe we could just go to where the exit was? There was a lot of space there, so if something comes, we can somehow run away, I'm sure. Plus there weren't many ghosts in there last time I checked." she finally offered, head titling as she waited for a response, while shuffling on continuously, looking over her shoulder every so often. Seiko smiled, showing of the natural cat-like grin of her's, while crying in agreement. "Yaay!~" she shouted gleefully, to the astonishment of Naomi. Why was she happy? Sure, she was tired, but was that really a good enough reason to cry out like that?

"Uh... Yeah..." Naomi agreed, giggling softly at her friend's behavior. She started to head down towards the stairs, since they were on the first floor, if she remembered correctly. One more to go, and they could fall asleep. Seiko eventually raced before her and towards the locked doors which they tested to see if they could escape earlier, knocking on it, before trying to open it. Nothing. "Aww... I wanted a breath of fresh air." she murmured, although didn't sound all that sad.

Noami in turn, sat close by, leaning on a wall for support. Her watchful gaze swiped over the corridor, keeping a close eye on the surroundings. Seiko slipped into a similar position next to her, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her hands around them, her head resting on her best friend's shoulder as she closed her eyes. "Night Seiko... I'll keep watch for now." she heard a mumble from above and moaned in acknowledgement, sleep quickly stealing her away.

After an hour, maybe an hour and a half, more or less, Seiko woke up. She carefully lifted her head, only to find Naomi asleep herself, her chest heaving and falling as she breathed in a calm rhythm. She licked her lips hungrily, the sleep in her eyes quite quickly leaving her. She grinned mischievously, but decided against touching her when she looked so peaceful. Her eyes were closed, which wasn't too good, since Seiko liked their beautiful, warm brown color that always looked at her with a scolding kind of expression, only to cover obvious joy behind. She had tomboyish short hair, another thing that she loved and appreciated about the teen. They were so lovely, and fit her perfectly. It framed her face to make her look even more lovely.

Then was her figure, which wasn't the only thing she loved her for, but definitely something to admire. She was lanky, but not clumsy. Honestly, Seiko was a little worried about her, because of her weight, but always tried to brush it off, seeing she wasn't exactly the fattest in the group either. Her body was so inviting, seductive. Like it had a life of it's own. With uncertainty, Seiko leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Naomi's forehead, smiling.

She would never return her feelings for her. She wouldn't love her. But she would; she'll protect her and keep her happy, even if it meant watching her go off with someone else. She could make her just as happy, she was certain, but Naomi's heart lay with Satoshi and she... She'd always prefer him over her, and they'll start a family and leave her alone because nobody liked her, as far as she was concerned, and the only person she shed feelings for belonged to someone else and she had to live with that knowledge... It was crucifying, but for Naomi, she promised herself to remain strong.

But now, now she was asleep. Seeing the opportunity, Seiko wept quietly, tears flashing in the corners of her eyes. "I love you Naomi. I love love love you!" she sobbed, voice barely above a whisper, seeing that she didn't want to wake her up with her obnoxious crying. Why was she crying, anyways? It wouldn't change a thing. She'll still be in love with Mochida, and she couldn't help it. Sinking to her knees, she stared at the old floorboards that they found themselves on, mumbling under her breath. "Why not me, Naomi? I'm right here. I'll always be." she promised, hiccuping, rubbing her sleeve under her eyes to clean tears from her cheeks.

"I'll always be right here, with you." Seiko whispered.

* * *

Running from the boy, Ayumi and Yoshiki managed to come inside the infirmary. "Suzumoto!" Ayumi cried in what sounded like panic and relief all the same. There stood the green-eyed girl, talking cheerfully with two ghosts of a blue hue. Both female. One seemed older than the other, about eleven years of age, if she had to guess. Her hair was styled in two ponytails, similar to her own. She was wearing a long-sleeved torn sweater with a tulip flower drawn on the side. She wore a plain skirt to go with it. No colors apart from blue, though, were showing. Her clothing was ragged, and had obvious marks of blood, despite the color not being visible. Where her left eyes would be, there was only an empty hole, blood pouring out of it, and staining her cheek.

The other one was younger, younger than the boy they saw too. Maybe seven? Six? She couldn't be too sure. This girl wore a long-sleeved turtleneck underneath a dungaree dress. Her head appeared to be missing, although there was a faint outline of what it looked like, giving the impression of short, dark hair. From the jawline and above, she had nothing. No head whatsoever, just an overview of the inside of her head from there, which was utterly disgusting. Blood was all over the girl's chin, pooling down on her clothes.

"Give her back!" Mayu wasn't paying attention to them, though, her concentration focused on the two children as they chatted away. "We have to save her." Yoshiki murmured, turning around and stalking into the hallway, followed by Ayumi, trotting uncertainly after him. He began to head in one of the directions, uncertain wherever he was going. Ayumi eventually pushed before him, feeling drawn to a specific spot - the west stairwell, on the second floor.

Stopping at the bottom of the stairs, she bend over to pick up a head of a antique doll, it appeared. It wore a read cap held with a grey-white string that made it possible to attach it to a piece of clothing, or an item. From under the cap a single lock of ruffled brown hair sprouted out, standing out against it's pale face. The doll had round, blue eyes, with four straps to act as eyelashes. Under each eye there were ovals of vibrant pink, a blush of sorts. Her lips were bright red and heart-shaped. That was all, though. She had nothing else underneath, missing a body. "It's a doll... Wonder what's it doing here." Ayumi murmured, turning the head in her hands.

"We should have a look about for the bottom part." she concluded, handing the head over to Yoshiki, who had deeper pockets than herself to preserve the head until they found all of it's parts that they had to. Picking herself up, she started to lead them towards an office instead. A label outside of it marked clearly "Custodian's Office." Outside of the room was a corpse, and after further investigation, Ayumi found a student ID that had to belong to whoever it was.

Shiho Hasegawa.

It was a female, that's all she could really tell, from the corpse, since it was in a far point of decaying. Frowning at the strong smell, she gently rolled the body over, revealing the body of the doll. Crying in triumph, she pulled it out swiftly, dusting it out. Yoshiki passed her the head and she quickly applied it to join the doll together. It now wore a red bow underneath it's chin, and a grey-white apron, held by the piece of ribbon. Underneath she had a red dress to match her cap. She had pretty long arms, with only stouts, no fingers at the tips. Were feet were supposed to be, little pieces of brown were sewn on to act as shoes.

"What do we do with it?" Yoshiki inquired, and Ayumi shrugged, narrowing her eyes. The doll started to weep, apologizing. Titling her head, Ayumi looked over at her companion, eyes widening. In a hurry, they returned to their friend and Mayu, who were still chatting about... Well, she couldn't quite catch that. "Suzumoto! SUZUMOTO!" they both called at the same time, to vain, however, as they got no reply.

The ghosts were guarding her, by now, and she had her eyes closed, like she was asleep. "Open your eyes, please!" Ayumi sobbed, feeling tears rushing into her eyes, scared for the girl's life. No reply. "Haven't you ghosts done enough already?! I don't know about everything that happened to you...and yeah, I get that it was really horrible...but you're cursing and killing innocent people who had nothing to do with any of it! What the hell is that supposed to accomplish? Huh?!" Yoshiki screamed at the two children, while the blunette took a step back in surprise.

"Kaaahhh!" one of the ghost children cried in sheer annoyance.

"Stop! If you make them mad, they'll shut us out!" Ayumi instructed the blond boy, stomping her foot lightly. "... Come on you two... I have something you need to hear, okay? Just listen!" she added to the children, thrusting her arm forward to show the doll they collected moments before, letting the spirits to listen to the spirit trapped inside of it.

"... Maa... eee..." the older ghost murmured, calming down a little. "MAAAAAHHH MEEE!" they started to both cry, sobbing one time after another, upset over whoever was that doll, for whatever reason it give them. "You can rest peacefully now, okay? You don't have to keep suffering. The horrible things that happened to you are all in the past. Your loved ones..." Ayumi persisted, her expression lighting. Whatever they were saying, it sounded like "mommy" to her, which was understandable.

She would have liked to see her mother too, in that situation. Although didn't understand why they would react like that to a doll, which couldn't possibly be their birth mother. "Your parents are waiting for you! Go to them now!" she continuously encourage the duo. "... Please? I know you can do it... Let go of that girl. Let go of Suzumoto." she instructed calmly, reaching out her free hand towards Mayu, for her to grab.

Instead of doing as they were asked, the ghosts picked up Mayu roughly off the floor, each grabbing her by one of the legs. She started to scream in protest, coming back to her senses, pleading to let her get back down. Without an effect. "...?! ... NO! ... STOP!" Ayumi quickly shouted, but too late. The two blue spirits glided towards the infirmary's door, crushing straight through, causing Mayu to scream in pain as glass dug into her skin, cutting her in multiple places. "Eee? ... No... No! NO!" the brown-haired teen screamed.

In panic and anger, Ayumi threw the doll on the ground. "YOU LIAR! I THOUGHT YOU WOULD SAVE HER!" she cried, cupping her face with her hands as she sobbed, petite body shaking roughly each time. "Aaaaaaaaahhh!" she screamed in defeat, sinking to her knees. As Yoshiki tried to near her, taking an attempt to help her up and through the situation, she stood shakily up and raced outside the infirmary, out into the hallway, disappearing out of sight.

"Is she... No..." he spoke to himself, following cautiously behind. Trailing after the teenager, he exited the room, and headed to the right, where he saw the ghosts taking Mayu, and believed Ayumi would head.

Ayumi had once again sunk to the ground, crying as she knelt before a big, fleshy splotch on the wall. The two pink beads that held Mayu's small ponytail up were stuck in the bloody meat, barely visible, as they were coated in the crimson liquid. What he supposed had happened, was the ghosts took her so fast down that hall, hitting her on the wall with unimaginable force... exploding her. It was a thing that you don't see too often, and even if it was, he wouldn't ever want to.

"U-ulgh!"

He gulped, shaking his head in disbelief. "Wh-what... the hell...?!" he asked, not expecting a reply. Ayumi didn't move apart from obvious shivers and trembles, crying her heart out.

"This isn't... This couldn't be... Suzu-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Shinozaki, don't look! Come on, let's get out of here!" Yoshiki murmured, aiming to help her back to her feet so they could leave the hallway as quickly as it might be possible. "I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" Ayumi stood up on trembling legs, screaming on. Pushing past the delinquent of 2-9, she raced down the hallway, anywhere to get away from the horrific image. "SHINOZAKI!" he yelled after her, but she didn't stop. Instead, she pushed herself faster, escaping the spot. It couldn't be. Why her? Why, why, why, why, why?!

"I'm... I'm really... starting to loose it..." Yoshiki decided finally, shaking his head as she sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "Shino-" He had to follow Ayumi, though, and just about as he was starting on his way, something hit him roughly on the back of the head. He didn't manage to turn around to look at his attacker before another strike put him down. As he fell on the floor, loosing consciousness pretty quickly, he could only feel someone slightly stronger than him pull him away, making inhuman noises as he did so, groaning and moaning.

_Quick Author's Note: _In the next chapter, I'll be introducing Ms. Yui, to generally follow more or less what happened in the game with the exception of Seiko and Naomi, pretty obviously! ^3^ I'll think up something to keep them busy myself. If you enjoy the story so far, please do leave a review and / or follow the story for the upcoming chapters!


	4. Chapter 4

"I-I'm so sorry!" Seiko cried, stumbling backwards. She only remembered sitting before Naomi. She felt rejected, jealous... Hurt, in general, and then everything went black and she came to her senses before the brown-haired boy. He was sprawled on the ground, blood puddling around him. The girl only stood there helplessly for a moment, before kneeling before him. "Mochida... MOCHIDA! You're not leaving do you hear me?!" she yelled at him, vision blurred through a stream of tears that rolled down her cheeks.

Was this her fault?

It could be. She was pretty vulnerable with such negative emotions keeping glued to her... Oh, she was so so stupid even thinking that stuff! She was with Naomi, and that's all she really needed. Nothing else and nothing more. And now there was a chance that she murdered the love of her life. Satoshi Mochida hacked, coughing up blood. There were multiple black dots clouding his vision as he tried to make out the figure before him.

All he could remember was sending Yuka to try and see another bathroom, and when he stood, waiting patiently for her arrival, something stabbed him from behind. He didn't get to see who did it, but felt some sort of a knife sink into his skin, thrusting inside him. After remaining inside for several, long seconds, it drew back, before repeatedly striking his abdomen. At that stage, he was barely cautious and writhing in pain. However much he wanted to, unconsciousness just wouldn't take him away, refusing to calm his burning insides. A maniacal laughter still rang in his ears, sounding a little familiar.

"Don't close your eyes, you hear me? Blinking is fine, just don't go to sleep, okay?" Seiko instructed the boy as she searched around in panic. She lifted him up, and ignoring the pleading calls to leave him alone, drew off his button-up shirt, to use to apply some pressure and soak up the blood, like a kind of bandage. It would have to be enough, unless he wanted her to take off the one he had underneath too.

Fumbling with the piece of material, she lay his student ID next to them, so he wouldn't loose it or his paper scrap. She leaned in to check the pulse, how fast or slow it was, and then checked his breathing. She had taken some classes on first aid, but doubted she would really need to use them in reality at any point. Taking the material again she wrapped it around her hands and started to apply pressure to Satoshi's wounds, breathing hollowly. "Come on, come on... Work goddammit!" she begged him starting to slowly loose the little amount of hope she had remaining.

For Naomi. She'll keep him alive for Naomi.

Seiko continued to madly cry, attempting her hardest to save the boy that lay before her. He hacked, like it was working, but his face grew noticeably pale and his eyes closed. "HEY! Don't sleep!" she instructed him, but got no reply. "Open your damn eyes, you hear me!" she screamed at him through frustration at her very self for letting it all happen, for not saving him. Or maybe he was alive? Well, this was Heavenly Host. He most likely wasn't.

"Don't leave us... Don't leave me. Yuka. Naomi. Don't leave us here alone!" she kept repeating, while adding more pressure to the multiple stab wounds. Through the deathly injury, she managed to get almost all of her uniform bloody, causing it to turn crimson around the skirt and sleeves mostly, as well as the shoes and socks. Moving away with wide eyes, she poked Satoshi a few times. "Wake up, Mochida... Please..." Seiko would shake her head sadly. How will she tell Naomi?

Poor Naomi... How will she take it? As a remembrance, a sentimental treasure, she picked up his ID and clipped it not far from her own, so it wouldn't get lost. "I'll give it to her, okay? She'll keep it and never forget you. Thank you. For keeping my Naomi happy." she finally managed to choke out as farewell of sorts, before moving away from the corpse, feeling fresh tears roll down her cheeks.

She still felt paralyzed throughout, accusing and cursing herself for loosing him. For letting him suffer. And she didn't save him, either. Seiko rocked slightly, face covered in tears as she stared at the boy before her, who was his normal self hours ago, with a sheepish smile on his face, or with a high-pitched squeal of fear at the single roll of thunder. He was such a scaredy cat, and yet it was impossible not to befriend him with obvious outgoing personality. "I'll protect her, okay? I wouldn't let no anything lay a finger on her head." she swore, carefully styling his hair back into place, moving his legs flat out and his hands folded across the chest.

He looked like in deep sleep, only one that he wouldn't wake up from.

* * *

Alone.

She was alone. Again.

Naomi took in a sharp breath to help her calm down, leaning roughly against the wall. Her pupils were widened to the point brown irises were merely visible. "Seiko?" she called out, seeing that the girl that had been there only an hour or go, maybe two, was now missing. Tears formed in the corners of her eyes and she stood up, stomping her foot on the weak floor, giving away a scream of fear and frustration. "YOU PROMISED! You promised you wouldn't leave me! That we'll not separate again! LIAR! LIAR LIAR LIAR!" she screamed at nothing, sobbing viciously afterwards.

"Or... Or something happened to you... Oh, Seiko!" she cried, immediately feeling anxious about the brunette's well-being. Everything was possible at this point, and she couldn't allow anything to happen to her. Moving cautiously on, Naomi looked around the area with extra care. No signs of the cheery, energetic friend's of her's, unfortunately appeared to be in sight. How much she hated the idea, the girl moved forwards, away from the spot of comfort. She slipped quite quickly corridor after corridor, seeking for her companion.

"Seiko?!" she continuously called in her goal of finding her, sighing to herself after getting no response every time. Getting slowly tired, Naomi wondered off into a rather random classroom. She found a figure there, in the same uniform like her own, with someone before her. A corpse? Her voice caught in her throat as she approached closer, making sure her presumption was correct.

Certainly, it was Seiko, sobbing lightly before the body of... Satoshi? No. No. No. NO. It wasn't him. It couldn't be. But who else wore a blue shirt under the button-up one? There was no blazer in sight, either. Every sign had shown it was Satoshi, but she couldn't think like that. Eventually, after she managed to stop tears from flowing into her eyes, she looked down at the other girl.

"... Seiko?"

* * *

After wondering the school for a while now, lost in her concerns for students of the class 2-9, Ms. Yui woke up underneath a shelf. She must have lost consciousness, or at least the knowledge of what was going on. Black spots were still in her vision, but... The shelf felt like it had gotten lighter. After a struggle, she screamed, managing to wriggle from underneath the piece of furniture. She held tightly onto her right arm, which felt like it was fractured. It stained her darker pink coat crimson with her own blood, showing some sort of glass had to bite into her skin. "OW! ... Oh..." she muttered, pain shrilling her voice.

Her breathing was roughened, and she breathed in and out in hopes of evening it out. "So, you're... really, truly concerned about the safety of your students, are you?" someone from the side asked. A spirit. A red one, too. It was dangerous. For a moment, the young woman's eyes widened, but she fought not to show signs of fear. "Of course I am!" she stated with determination.

"But you're just their instructor, no? You have no familial bond with any of them. You're not their mother." it only dwelled further, confusion in the echoing voice of whoever it was. "But they're my children!"

"...!" Yui looked up at the... thing, head titled proudly. She was still frightened, to the very bone, but didn't let it slip noticed. "I think I speak for every one of us at Kisaragi Academy... When we say that we love our children... We care about them just like their parents do." she continued, hoping it convinced him. "Never underestimate a teacher." she added, more dangerously, taking a shaky step forward.

"Ooh.. ah... ulgh..." the spirit only mumbled, barely audible. "Now, answer me this! Your little rant earlier suggested that more of my students are here than the two I came with and the one I heard... Is it true? Were the others brought here as well?" Yui asked, looking down at her injury for a moment, not wanting to stare at the being before her. "It is. Numerous corporeal entities joined us in these closed spaces, all at the same time. Counting you...I sensed the arrival of nine people." it answered, but the teacher wasn't exactly listening, focusing on the arm of her's.

_My right arm is definitely broken... And the blood. All those cutting implements on the shelf must have done a number on my back... I wonder how long... I was out for... _she wondered inwardly, putting little concentration to anything else. _Kishinuma and Shinozaki must be worried. I need to get back to the classroom. _Were her final thoughts in the classroom, immediately getting anxious all over about the couple's well-being. Not to mention the others, of course. If anything happened to them... She wouldn't forgive herself.

She decided firmly, ignoring any of the calls after her, that she'll save them, even if that's the last thing she's going to do. Shishido stepped out of the classroom, dragging her legs, which refused to work properly. Succumbing to unbearable feelings of anger and hatred, one victim drawn to harm another... It's not just people trapped in this space, but their sadness and torment as well. It's got nowhere to go, so it just hangs in these halls. "We shouldn't be here. I have to get them all back home. Please... everybody... Stay safe..."

_Author's Note;_ Sorry I haven't update. First week of school was a little rough, and I'm still getting accustomed to the changes, etc. I hope you understand! Anyways, I'll try to update more now, and am planning on beginning another story soon as well. Stay tuned up! (;


	5. Chapter 5

Seiko looked up at her best friend, feeling fresh tears run down her cheeks. How will she take in the information? She was supposed to return with Satoshi, back home, start dating and eventually live in a family. Together. She should have died instead of him. That way, her dear Naomi would have been happy... He could make her happy, unlike herself. And now, he was gone. He was their only chance, and he no longer was with them. How will they explain this to his mother, when they return?

If it would help, they could always find Yuka. Make it ensured that his little sister made it back. For him. The brunette failed to describe what happened in words, instead waving her arms in multiple gestures that were horribly difficult to understand. Naomi was also in a loss for words, staring at the corpse of her crush and her friend who sat beside him, arms flaying.

"What... happened...?" she asked simply, voice hushed as she fell on her knees beside the boy, sobbing quietly. Getting no reply, she more intently did so. "WHAT HAPPENED?!" she screamed. Seiko sat there, bewildered. Why was she shouted at? She tried her hardest! She tried to keep him alive, for her.

"I... found him like that..." she began to explain, also quietly, not wanting to get on Naomi's nerves again. "I tried to save him. I got his shirt and everything, to stop the bleeding. It didn't work... and he... he died... I tried... I swear I did..." she cried, hiding her face in her own hands so that the short-haired girl didn't have to look at her tears, which could cause guilt in her. Naomi didn't reply. She wanted to, but couldn't. What was she supposed to do now? There wasn't even time for mourning! Her outstretch of grief was stopped by a ring to her phone. "...?"

There shouldn't be connection in here, should there be? She tried phoning her parents, and then the others, but never did she get an answer. Curiously, Seiko looked up, her teary eyes focused on the pink mobile. So that they could both listen, Naomi set it on the speaker, listening intently to the crackles on the other end. "Uh... Hello?" the brunette inquired in a wobbly tone.

" e... e..." a creepy manly voice came from the device, scaring them both. It was followed with a familiar one of a woman, though. "Naomi? Are you there?" Naomi looked at her phone with wide eyes. Her mother? She noticed her gone! She will be found! She was probably searching for her right now! "Mom...? Mom! Mom! Mom, it's me! I'm in real trouble!" Seiko stared at the device without a rest, watching the oblivious try to connect with the woman. "Naomi! Please, just let me hear your voice!" the voice continued, a sob coming afterwards.

"..." so... it didn't work. She should have known. She should have knew better than that. "Please... Just say something! I'm your mom, Naomi! God, please...don't let anything have happened to her!" the line was disconnected, to instead give the repeated message of the man. " e... e... e... e..." Naomi gasped, freaked out by the voice as it continued for about 20 solid seconds, and threw her phone on the wall. It bounced off, breaking, probably. It wasn't really that much of a good one, and it definitely wouldn't work the same again. "SATOSHI!" she wailed, crying madly.

Why was this happening?

* * *

The clear sound of panting, coughing and wheezing sounded from deep within a hallway. Standing beside a taller boy stood a girl, hair short, light brown. Her turquoise eyes were stretched wider than anyone could imagine as she fought for her breath, looking up at her companion. "I can't take anymore of this!" she finally cried out, but no tears came into her eyes. Like they were already all used up. "What's wrong with this school?!" she continued, suspecting to get no answer. No reply. It angered her, but in the midst of her panic and fear, it was barely noticeable. "Who the hell was that, and why is he here?! If we got hit with a hammer like that...we'd be goners!"

Stopping for a single moment to re-catch her breath, she finally managed to sob, and was unable to stop afterwards. "Where's Kurosaki...?!"

The boy beside her, much calmer, blinked a few times, looking over his shoulder in a slightly frantic behavior. "I'm sure he's fine, Mitsuki. Don't worry about him. He was just here." he tried to calm the girl, rolling back his shoulders. He took a few deep breaths, regaining his usual heartbeat. It was a little tough, but if Mitsuki wasn't calm, at least he should try and be. "We'll run into him any time now. I'm sure of it."

Mitsuki whined quietly, shaking her head. "I hate this... I hate this! I don't want to die like that!" she began to sob instead, her legs wobbly. "You saw it too, right? Emi's body? Her head... Her head was split wide open!" she exclaimed, bursting into fresh tears immediately, ending her dry sobs. She cupped her face in her hands, crying into them, remembering the green-haired girl's body. Laying motionlessly on the ground, with her head split like a watermelon, her glasses shattered into pieces. A piece even digging through the palm of her hand, piercing right throughout it. Her nose was heavily bleeding, and there was saliva dripping still from her open mouth.

"It had to be done from that hammer!"

"Don't think about it! Please...!" Fukuroi stopped her instantly, voice much louder in comprising. He hated to think of his classmates like that, but that image kept to flash in his mind. One after another, playing with his guilt like a puppet. All he got in response was a weep from Mitsuki, ending her talking for the time being. Sighing, he turned to face the corridor once more and shakily headed forth, followed by his classmate, steady footsteps ringing from behind.

"Dammit... Where DID everybody go?!" the blond boy shouted in frustration, looking wildly across the area. They were still alone, like everyone just... disappeared. Reclaiming his calm behavior, he stood upright, pushing his glasses further up his nose. "...? Ahh... Wha...? Look... Fukuroi, look! The hallway! It... It can't be... The corridor... It grew..."

Mitsuki stopped in her tracks, head cocked as she looked ahead at the outstretched area with mild interest in her eyes. The boy also stopped, unfortunately looking the wrong way. "... What... is...?" he muttered mostly to himself.

"No, no, the other way! Look, down the hall!" Mitsuki corrected him, getting a different reaction than the one she would expect. "Something's... Ack! Something's coming!" he managed to stammer in disbelief. Fear grew inside the girl once again, who looked in the same direction. "...?! What?!"

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

The two quickly resumed their escape, turning around to begin fleeing once more. "Wh... WHAAAA!" Mitsuki ran a little further, before hearing a loud smash to follow the call. Without a doubt, it was Fukuroi. "GAH! Aagh...AAAAAAHHHHHH!" holding back a sob, she looked behind her to see what was going on. Why her friend wasn't following her anymore. A thud followed, scaring her even more. "OOOAAGHHH!"

The thuds didn't stop, one following the other, in a rhythmical manner. Three strikes. Then silence. "Oallghh!" it was no longer the inhuman beast with the sledgehammer moaning, but Fukuroi who was sprawled on the ground. He was close to death, it was obvious, and what was worse? Mitsuki in no way could help him. She couldn't do anything. Absolutely anything. She would just get killed as well. "NOOOOO!" she whimpered, flailing in tears. "NOOOOOOOOO! Hyaaah! Aaaah...no...NOOOOOO! No... No... NOOOOOOOO!"

With that, she began to flee again, coming to the walkway that joined the two wings together. She stood outside for a moment, watching the rain pour as she cried her heart out for another classmate they had lost. "What's happening?" she sniffled. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" she demanded. As she neared the other doors, she turned around to look at the doorway she came through, hoping to see her friend shuffle through, and to scream for leaving him behind.

Nothing. She should have expected that, actually. "..." without a word, she returned to her coarse to the other wing, stopped by a bluish figure. It was smaller than her, therefore, she assumed, younger. It was a girl, with nothing but an outline of a cranium. "Gihh me back my heahh..." she said, making Mistuki jump back. "AAAAAGHHH!"

* * *

"Oonnggg... Where am... I?" a boy voice rang out, breaking and low. Yoshiki managed to sit up, pulling himself together. His head was in incredible pain from the beforehand given strike, and he massaged it for a moment. "Aaoohh, God, my head...is pounding..." he muttered, looking around his surroundings. He yelped at the sudden appearance of three ghosts, every single on familiar with him. A boy and two girls, laughing, like they were mocking him. Enjoying every little piece of his misery they could. "Ulgh... It's...you! Where the hell...did you take me?!" he demanded from the children, getting only a piece of laughter instead of a proper reply.

"Where... Where's Shinozaki?!" with a giggle or so, the ghosts vanished within the thin air, to his surprise. Yoshiki panted for a moment, looking around to search for them again, but they really did disappear. "Urgh... my legs..." he moaned, trying to lift himself, but failing. "I can't stand up!" after multiple attempts, causing him to wheeze and pant further, he gave up.

"GODDAMMIT!" he screamed in sheer frustration and despair. He had to help Shinozaki. He had to.

_Author's Note;_ I managed to squeeze on today, and although the chapter is rushed, here you go! To clear everything up, Satoshi died in Seiko's place for the sake of a plot. I have everything planned out to the stage of when they get out of Heavenly Host and further than that, even c; It's kinda short in comprising to the others, so I'll probably make a new, longer one ( hopefully ) quicker.


	6. Chapter 6

Laying on the infirmary bed, a girl stretched, eyes still closed. Her hair was slightly ruffled from sleep. "Big brother..." she moaned sleepily, but got no response. At that point, she opened her eyes, assuming that Satoshi dozed off. Looking at the bed beside her, she gasped, pressing herself into the pillow. He was gone! Why? When? She looked around the room, but couldn't find him around either. She stood up to look out for him, fear and panic stretching along her. How could this happen?

A flame appeared in the corner of the room, and as a curious child, she walked over in it's direction. It left a piece of paper behind, and after further investigation, she could firmly decide it was a newspaper page, an article of the head title: "Heavenly Post: Four Children Abducted & Killed: Followup report" picking the piece up, she scanned over the ripped paper before reading out loud to herself. The brutal, shocking deaths of the recent kidnapped grade-schoolers have now been traced back to the hands of the instructor found in the room with them. A large pair of sewing scissors were found in his possession...and these were confirmed to be the tool used in removing the victims' tongues, ultimately leading to death through excessive bleeding or choking. One of the victims even had the majority of her head slowly and methodically removed. This cranial mass was found no the floor next to her body.

Of these childen, one was _ when investigators arrived at the scene of the crime. She was _d, but somehow s_"

At that point, words weren't clear enough to read, either ripped or coated in blood. A little piece more could be read however, yet it was only a few jumble of letters that made little to no sense at all. Even so, Yuka still read them. "The Hea_s pi_ a_n tha_" the rest of the paper was ripped from the bottom. No traces of further information was left. "The children on the picture..."

Two of the children on the picture appeared to be vaguely similar. She definitely saw the boy in those shorts somewhere around, just like she did the girl with the red dress. "Someone made notes..." she noticed, looking at the top of the paper, which was scribbled with red pen.

'- Friends killed by spirits of children.  
↓ (Law? Purpose?)  
- Spread the curse further? ← Gathering  
- Children with no tongues  
- Girl with top of head missing  
- Girl in red dress  
- Child victim  
↓ (Grudge)  
- Gave shape to school building? ←→ Escape?'

It made no sense to her, therefore she laid it back in it's original spot and started to head out of the infirmary. She started to comb her hair with her fingers, but was interrupted by a scream. "I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!" it sounded familiar. "Shinozaki?" she called out, beginning to head up the hallway in the direction of the voice. There was a trace of blood on the floor, causing her to jump back. "Eeep!"

The floor was covered in sticky residue, suggesting someone was dragged along the hallway. Gulping, Yuka moved on, stopping beside a rusty tool of sorts. She looked at it closely, picking it up. A nail puller. It could get useful, right? Either as a weapon or as a tool. She walked on, finding an odd stain of a charcoal color, but with no proper shape. It was just a shape curved on the wall. She looked up at it for a moment, biting on her lip before walking on.

She headed towards the third floor, stopping in her tracks. As she passed one of the classes, she could hear sobs and weeps from inside, before two figures appeared in the doorway. She screamed in fear, beginning to flee, but was grabbed by the wrist. She dropped the nail puller, tears brimming in the corners of her eyes. "HELP! HELP! LET ME GO!" she commanded, struggling against the grip.

"Shh... Yuka... It's me, Shinohara? And Nakashima." Seiko murmured, still a little frightened. She knew that sooner or later they would need to find the girl, but she couldn't imagine how to explain now that her dear big brother was dead. Maybe they could... Hold it off, for now? Yes. That definitely was for the better. Like she heard those very thoughts, Naomi nodded curtly, her brown gaze locked on the 14-year-old, who stopped her struggles to look at the two through teary eyes. As her wrist was freed, she quickly flung herself at Seiko, crying in joy. "I found someone! I'm not alone anymore. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cheered.

"Ha... No problem." Naomi replied, her tone still set-off, but getting better. If Satoshi was there, he would need his sister's safety. And so, she will keep care of her. Keep her alive, for any costs. "What do you have there? You dropped something." Seiko mentioned towards the tool, laying a little distance ahead. "I was passing through the corridor beside the infirmary, and I found it there." Yuka explained, picking the rusty item back into her hands, passing it over to Naomi, who held it tightly in one hand, while offering the other for Yuka to hold. Gladly accepting, she held to her hand, taking Seiko's in her other, free one. "I-I saw a bathroom around here... Um... I need to... But there were boards over it..." she tried to explain, blushing in embarrassment.

Seiko nodded in understanding, before glancing around. "Tell you what, you show us the way, and we'll open it up for you, okay?" Yuka nodded gladly, and they moved towards the closed bathroom. Noami and Seiko used their little strength left to pull it open, panting afterwards. "All your's." Seiko murmured, smiling as she said so. Nodding, Yuka swallowed and moved inside, disappearing behind the doors. Naomi and Seiko followed, just in case. "There are... no stalls..." Naomi muttered, matter-to-factly.

"Huh... You shouldn't hold it in, though. It's bad for the bladder. Maybe we'll leave you for a moment, and you'll... do your business you know... through the hole or somethin'." Seiko offered, but Yuka quickly shook her head in disagreement. "I'll... hold it... Nng..." she frowned, before objections could begin, moving towards the exit. She couldn't do something like that! There had to be some operational toilet around here, right? "WAIT!"

Seiko moved towards a corner, picking up a piece of paper. "Mitsuharu...really isn't anywhere to be found, is he? I guess it's true, I'll probably never see him again... But I may have figured out a way of getting in contact with him, at least! He left me a message on the teacher's desk in one of the classrooms. Looks like even when we're in different spaces, we can still communicate that way.

But it's not enough... There's no warmth to be felt from the written word alone. I also miss our fights...out impromptu wrestling matches. But it's not just the physical contact. What I want more than anything is to see his face again... I just want to be able to see him around, and make small talk. Ask him how he's been, and what he plans to do after school. Those simple, everyday interactions are some of my most precious memories now. What I wouldn't give to have those days back..." she read, after clearing her throat. "... Funny what goes through your head when you're trying to make frostbitten fingers move without cracking off..."

After reading the piece, Seiko shrugged and let it go, having it flutter back onto the floor. Joining the duo again, she joined them to head onto the second floor again to see their luck there. A shutter sound followed, causing the group to trot after the sound. "Huh...?" Naomi murmured. "... Sounds like... a camera?" Yuka observed, titling her head in a questioning manner. As they moved into the hallway, another flash sounded.

Morishige was leaning against a wall, looking pleased with himself, his mobile in front of him. "..." he merely looked up at the group, blinking in their direction. "Morishige?" Seiko squealed, happy that they managed to find another classmate. What a relief! At the voice, he put his phone swiftly into his pocket, and nodded. "Shinohara, Nakashima... Mochida..." he greeted the three, voice disinterested. "I'm so glad to see someone from class..." he lied, gritting his teeth. They just had to interfere, did they? Guess so.

"So are we!" Naomi replied, taking a glimpse further down the hall. In disgust, Yuka run to the midhall, dropping onto her knees and sobbing, while Naomi went to comfort her. Seiko stuck out her tongue, like something bitter was just put on it. "Wh... What is THAT?!" she cried, pointing at the stain. "It's an awful sight, isn't it? Seems like pulverized human remains to me. There's a bit of breast meat mixed in, so I'm guessing female." Morishige explained, looking down. "Never thought I'd see something so horrific. Makes me want to throw up." that was a lie. The sight was very nice, in fact. Marvelous. Like a beautiful prop on a scene, realistic, untouched by anything that might ruin it. It was magnificent! But they wouldn't understand. They were blind.

"Ew... but... I'm glad we found you. Have you seen anyone else?" Naomi asked, returning with Yuka, who was hugged into her shoulder, eyes closed, making low whimpering sounds. "I'm afraid I haven't. I only just awoke in here a short while ago, and haven't encountered a single other soul." Seiko nodded, her gaze saddening. "Same. 'Part from Yuka, we didn't see anyone else."

"So... You haven't seen Mayu, then?" Morishige asked with bitter disappointment. "Afraid not." They were so useless! They couldn't even figure out where, more or less, Mayu could be. What a help! Sighing, he shook his head sadly. "That poor girl. I'm sure she's in here somewhere...shivering...and crying... I need to find her. I need to be with her."

Frowning, Seiko clapped his shoulder, in a comforting style. "Hey. I'm sure you'll find her. How about we search together, hmm?" she asked, while Morishige shook his head again. "No... If we're split up, it's highly possible we can more quickly stumble upon someone else. I'll continue on my own." Naomi nodded. "All right. Then how about we designate classroom 1-A as an official rendezvous point? If you find any of the others, tell them we'll all be gathering together there. And we'll do the same. Sound good?"

Morishige nodded, turning around, and stalking away. Yuka looked up at the companion that had her laced around the shoulder. "Is... is it throw up?" she asked, pointing at the bloody pile. "Nothin'. Dontcha look, now, kay?" Seiko quickly shot herself in the girl's view, a grin painted across her face. "That boy... he was..." she didn't continue, shivering instead. "It's probably not what you're thinking. Come on." Naomi soothed her, moving on, southward.

"The hall... I was here with big brother... It got... longer?" Yuka said, after they went down a pair of stairs, her eyes stretched in curiosity. Seiko shrugged and moved deeper into the grown hall, looking at a corpse beside the doors. "Naruse Mika. 17. Musashigawa Girls' High School, Class II-3." she read from the girl's tag.

"Poor girl." Naomi noted. Yuka went towards the doors, trying to push them open. They wouldn't budge, but there was a lock. "We should find the key." she offered, getting a couple of heads to nod in agreement. Taking hold of the two other girls' hands, Yuka led them on. They headed towards the far w_est, and there, went up some stairs. Up those, they stumbled across an empty bucket. Seiko looked at it more carefully. Mochida could pee in it! _she thought gleefully, but was caught off guard when she was left alone in the corridor for a moment.

Huffing, she followed into a classroom. Class 1-A. After investigating the desk, they could clearly see a message engraved on it:

******Ms. Yui, we've gone to find you. If we pass each other and you see this message, wait right here. We'll be back.**


	7. Chapter 7

"Yui-sensei was here!" The girl cooed cheerfully, quite proud of herself and her find. She was pointing on the teacher's podium in class 1-A, a grin graced upon her features.

If that was the message scripted, then certainly, Ms. Shishido had to be somewhere, right? Safe and sound! Unless... She didn't really want to head that way. Seiko approached, followed by Naomi and read the message left by what must have been one of their friends. All for sure, it wasn't Morishige, since he just woke up moments ago and instantly proceeded to search for Mayu. She would assume the teen was alone, unfortunately, due to the closed spaces and the little room each one held. Then there was... Yoshiki and Ayumi. They had to be the ones!

"Yeah... The handwriting, looks like.. Kishinuma's, doesn't it?" Naomi thought out loud, getting a nod from Seiko. "If we stay here, will they find us?" Yuka asked, voice twinkling with hope. Naomi frowned. "Yeah, maybe." Who knew if they were in the same space, which could be problematic. "Look, there's another message!" Seiko cheered, pointing to another part of the podium. Unfortunately, the words were scratched and torn, unreadable. Shrugging, the girl hurled the nail puller over her shoulder.

Humming, and giggling, she walked towards a glass cabinet, taking a peer inside. "I thought we could take that key up there. It could be useful." She voiced out, while reaching out to open the piece of furniture. It was stuck together, not giving a budge. "Break the glass, maybe?" Naomi offered, and Seiko nodded once more, taking a swipe to smash into the glass. It shattered into pieces the very second the strike came to be, while the three jumped back so that they wouldn't get cut by any glass that sprayed around.

Yuka walked cautiously over to the cabinet, and by standing on her tiptoes, picked up a tiny key from the top and showed it to the two. "Got it!" She exclaimed brightly. Naomi chuckled, nodding. "I'll put it in my pocket. Might become useful." She said, before looking at Seiko. Unluckily, the nail puller also shattered at the impact. It was useless now.

Seiko stared at it, sighing loudly in frustration. "Nothing more's here." The teen murmured after poking around a little more. She led them outside again and headed towards the north, towards a new note hanging on the wall. "Do not make eye contact with the children. Noted." She read, quite liking the fact that she could do that. She rarely got the chance to do that in the classroom, since the calmer pupils always went first and content was read before her turn could come. "Their grudges serve as the ties that hold this school building together, and largely account for the dreadful curse placed upon it. When staring such power in the face, your mind will surely wither, and your soul will no doubt be eaten."

She blinked a few times, giggling to herself. "Why would they eat our souls?" Yuka looked at the page uncomfortably. "Maybe we should go see where the key goes?" She offered, getting a positive response. She could only think of the extended hallway, and that the doors were closed. They should check that out, shouldn't they? She began to certainly lead them towards the spot, skipping lightly in the direction. Eventually, she was granted the key from Naomi and pushed it into the lock. Fitted.

Gnawing at her lip, she twisted it, before pushing it open. Outside was revealed a covered walkway, rain rumbling over the top of it. Taking the key with her, Yuka moved towards the older girls and held their hands once more, while they all headed towards the second wing. "It's cold!" Seiko whined, getting hushed by Naomi quickly. "And the school's so big! We'll never find each other at this rate!" She continued after a rest.

Yuka stopped for a moment, shivering and straining as she felt stomach pains emitting from her filled bladder. "Are you alright?" Naomi asked her quietly, and Yuka nodded. "I'll be fine." She half-lied. She just had to believe that a usable bathroom would be found in the second wing, that's all. Naomi's focus was taken by the woods surrounding.

What if Yuka did her business there? There were probably ghosts there, though, so scratch that. They seemed endless and easy to get lost in. Not to mention, they surrounded the school building pretty finely. It would be impossible to escape through that route. Panting, Yuka started to head forth again, determined to hold herself into one piece for the time being. She had to.

As they entered the next wing, Yuka could feel a splitting headache surge through her, Seiko frowning deeply at the thickness of the air. "I don't like it here one piece. It's harder to breathe." Although, maybe it was her neck? Something like that didn't just pass away in the matter of seconds, she supposed. It was seriously hurt by the rope.

"My head... It's really sore... It's like it's about to split..." Yuka complained with a loud moan. "Yeah... and my ears and ringing..." Naomi trailed off, taking a glimpse around. Shoes were scattered everywhere, pretty small in size. Belonging to pupils of Elementary schools for her eye. "It might not be safe here. Would you like to leave, and we'll be back soon?" Naomi asked, while Yuka stared up at her in disbelief. "O-of course not! I don't want to be left alone..." Nodding, Seiko lead them around the lockers, investigating each one.

"There's a note up here!" Yuka called, and Seiko laughed, while pushing her way forth. They should know by know that she was the one reading. "- 2. - D. Okay..." Seiko read, titling her head. That was odd. It didn't even make sense! After reading the weird message, they headed to the west doorway, and emerged to a new area. A hall, to be exact. "A toilet!" Naomi cried to the youngest of the three, pointing to a doorway. Indeed, a note hang on the wall, reading: 'Boy's Lavatory: Any and all students responsible for damaging these facilities will be severely reprimanded.'

In joy, Yuka raced into the bathroom. All the stalls were locked off, through a large hole. "No luck." Naomi sighed. "Nnnng... Rnnng..." Yuka groaned. "Don't worry. If there's a boy bathroom, there's a girl's one too, right?" Seiko tried to cheer her up, and Yuka nodded. Sounded reasonable. Heading in the same direction as before, they trailed off onto a staircase, heading down to investigate the spot first of all.

It ended abruptly in a dead end, with a girl's body sprawled on the ground, holding a piece of paper in a bony hand. Naomi closed her eyes in disgusting, ripping the paper from the decaying corpse's grasp. "Luck is fickle...but I still have faith in it. That good luck charm... I know it's stupid...but I truly believe it works... So I know I'll see you again. Mao...and if anyone else finds this letter...please...wish her good luck for me. - Kaori Kimura, class 2-4, Lexern High."

Close by was another of the victim's memoirs. "COLD

HURTS TO MOVE FINGERS

NO STRENGTH TO WRITE ON DESK  
CANNOT TALK OR SEE FRIEND

TENDON IN LEG CUT

BLEEDING BADLY." Seiko read the depressing message, shaking her head. How unfortunate was that for the poor soul? She left the note be, moving up the stairs again. The three continued up, moving past the ground floor. Just like the first. And second. On the third, they found another corpse, laying close to a pair of doors. Taken from size, it had to be a High School student.

"Ryoko Fujiwara, 17." Naomi murmured, reading the tag that lay close by. Looking at the door, the tag 'Principal's Office; No entry permitted' was found on the very doors, hard to read, but still manageable. Seeing the doors were closed, they continued down to the second floor they had passed, and went through those. It was almost identical to the first floor's one, but in a worse state. "Girl's Lavatory: No unauthorized teasing or trickery. Anyone caught horsing around will be severely punished. Nice school." Seiko commented on yet another note.

A door covered in papers was blocked by another set of holes, blocking the entrance. "... So sorry Yuka."

Nodding, the girl continued into another room. It was all empty, apart from two single notes scattered around. Seiko approached one that looked fairly similar to the last one. "- 1. - N. Yeah..." Shrugging, Seiko headed over to the next one. At least this one made more sense! She blinked a few times, before clearing her throat and beginning.

"Heavenly Host Elementary School. Notice of school Closure. 10-18-1975. Due to the reputation earned from repeated tragic incidents and accidents in and around this school, plans for its abolition have been finalized. There has been a sharp decline in registration and attendance since the initial incidents, indicating to the school board that our time is at an end. We sincerely regret to announce that Heavenly Host Elementary School will close its doors for the last time on November the 18th, 1975. It is through my own vices that this disdainful decision has come to pass, and for that, I must offer my deepest apologies to all who are affected. Filed: To all teaching staff. Heavenly Host Elementary School. Principal; Takamine Yanagihori." Seiko read, her features twisting. Closure?

Heading on, they emerged into a hallway, splitting at the end. At one end, there was some sort of green goo covering the ground. It was painfully burning whenever walked on, and Naomi screamed as she did, jumping back. "Can't get there." She finally breathed, leading the group the opposite way to see what they may find there instead. Walking to the end of the hallway, there was a doorway which led to some stairs, which they climbed down.

Mid-way, there was a corpse sitting on a chair in the corner. Close by was a name tag, which Naomi picked up. "Nao Takahashi, 17." She read. Moving onto the first floor east hall, they happened to find an.. odd spot. Swallowing, they moved to another note. "111. 222. 333. 444. 555. 666. 777. 888. 999. 111. 222. 333. 444. 555. 666. 777. 888. 999. 111. 222. 333. 444. 555. 666. 77. III I III." That was strange, to say the least, and Seiko decided to leave the note lone, because of the very reason. Nearby piano music was sounding, every so often wrong keys pressed. The doors of the room were closed, though.

Moving on, they found themselves doubling back. Checking the door again, this time it was open and somewhat still. "I don't like it here..." Yuka muttered, a shiver running down her back, causing her tiny frame to shake visibly. Entering the room, the three walked up to the piano that the music was coming from. Or, tried to reach it.

In their way stood a fallen cabinet, shards of glass spread unevenly across the ground. It appeared pretty heavy, out of extraordinary in that case. Trying to get over it with the litter of glass was most likely not the smartest idea. Turning around, they chose a different route, this time reaching the piano, on the way hearing a loud slam on the keys. Then, everything goes silent. Like the player just left. With nothing else to see, they left the room. At that point, music sparked back to life.

There was another pair of doors, closed this time round. Therefore, they continued to go north. At the very end of the hall were locked doors to the staff room. "Strange. There should be a key nearby, right?" Seiko mumbled, trying to open the door up, unsuccessfully. Heading towards the west, it brought them up to a loop, and they emerged in the entrance way. Walking through the same corridor, Yuka run forth.

"There are doors here! An Art room, it says!" She explained, opening the classroom and walking inside, not really waiting for the others.

Back in Kisaragi, she enjoyed her Art and Design lessons, so this was a treat. If you could even call it that way. She wasn't sure what to expect, but it certainly wasn't what she did. It was better. Although there were no real desks or anything, there were multiple canvases and materials to be used. The only problem was, they weren't usable. To be honest, she expected something horrible to be on the canvases, like drawings with blood. Luckily, it was nothing of sorts. Approaching the corner, the three were stopped.

"Ah! Shinohara... Nakashima!" Yuka wailed, hiding behind Seiko. In the corner stood a tall teen with straight bluish grey hair, facing the wall. "Yeah. I see her too. She looks... living, I suppose. Never saw the uniform before." Naomi whispered. "We should talk to her!" Yuka then responded, pulling herself forward. "I guess."

As they neared, they found the girl having empty, hollow eyes. Unresponsive to their presence and everything else. "Hi there! I'm Shinohara Seiko, and this is Nakashima Naomi and Yuka Mochida. We're from Kisaragi Academy. We performed this ritual with our friends... And we lost consciousness... We woke up divided and in this school. Who are you?" Seiko asked, offering a lighthearted smile. There was no change in expression in the girl, no movement, no nothing.

It appeared she was chanting a charm.

"Nakashima?"

"Yeah."

"... yet in the grand scheme of things, are they not tiny sampling of small, insignificant lives? These chicks who are nested within, never to be seen again...washed away by nothingness...rising and falling in a constant stream... Oh, I do appreciate Sachiko's kind gesture, but any more will only bring me sadness... Please, no more..." Yuka heard the girl say, blinking in confusion after the statement. Backing off, the trio walked out of the classroom, creeped out by whatever was going on.

They met a girl running down the hall, who frantically looked around, before escaping to the west and into the hall of that side. "... It's somebody else!" Yuka exclaimed, pointing in the direction. "Looks like many other people were brought here." Naomi agreed, beginning to pursuit the stranger. They run after the stranger. "Um... Hi!" Seiko greeted the girl. "Sorry if we scared ya. We're students of Kisaragi Academy... And..." Seiko trailed off, seeing the girl shiver and whimper, ignoring them. "What's wrong?" Yuka asked.

"NO! NO-ONE BELIEVES YOU!" She screamed at them. "NOT A SINGLE WORD!" She spat viciously, backing a step away. "OUT OF MY WAY!" The girl finally added, pushing past Naomi and Seiko to escape the two. "So... um..." Seiko mumbled after the girl, shrugging it off. Everyone that they stumbled upon seemed to loose their minds. As they exited the hall, the ground started to shake under them. Yuka fell to her knees, squealing in fear. Naomi and Seiko hugged around her to protect her, both screaming quietly. "Another earthquake?!"

Eventually, it passed off, and Yuka picked herself up, with the help of Naomi and Seiko. She was hiccuping and shivering wildly, hugging Naomi for comfort. "It's okay... Everything's okay..." Seiko looked around. "Hey! Look! The holes are gone!"


	8. Chapter 8

Indeed, the holes once littering the outside of the girl's lavatory were now missing, giving a clear pass towards the entrance. Yuka, in the midst of anguish, trotted forth, her expression lighting in hope. As she tried to open the door, it wouldn't budge. Neither did it have a lock, so it couldn't have a key they could find to open it with. The window was sealed tightly with protective charms. [Spiritual Confinement] [Buddha's Guardianship] [Banishment of Malice] [Charm of Exorcism] [Metaphysical Barrier], she read to herself.

Not even one of these charms suggested anything, apart from the charm of exorcism. That was very much it. Whatever it was though, it wouldn't let her open the bathroom doors. "Why are they here? Is something inside?" Naomi murmured, fear crept into the depth of her tone, masked by the owner. If she was scared, poor Yuka must have it worse. She was young, innocent. Putting her up against this was an unimaginable sin. As she assumed, the girl was now whimpering and shivering again, feeling like she was ready to explode any moment from this point on. "Yuka, dear, holding back isn't going to help. It's very, very bad for the bladder. What if..." Naomi trailed off, looking at Seiko.

Like a hero called for help, Seiko stepped forth, her marking grin on her face. "I could go with Naomi like you know turn our backs and stuff. You can just use the corner. Not like it's anything bad." She comforted her the slightest bit, shoulders tugging in a simple shrug. Shaking her head, Yuka groaned under her breath, straining. "Or... We could lead you outside. To that walkway, you know? There are woods there. Why don't you do it there, behind a tree? Ever been to a camping trip? It's just like that."

"... Okay!" Yuka agreed finally, ready to empty her bladder at last. Taking the two girl's hands, she would head towards the entrance along with them, a little slower than usual. Her stomach was seriously hurting by this stage.

As they reached the entrance, Seiko and Naomi stopped. "I'll keep the doors slightly open. You can climb the fence, right? We'll be right here. Just shout real loud if anything happens, okay?" Naomi asked, holding the doors open widely so the 14-year-old could leave. Nodding, she headed to the middle of the walkway, and by that time, the doors were already mostly closed. She slowly, yet steadily walked to the fence, standing before it for a moment. Her breath was caught deeply in her throat.

It certainly was taller than she imagined, would she be able to get over it? Perhaps. But her dress could easily get ripped in the progress. Oh well... It wasn't like anybody would be looking. Gulping, she began to pull herself up on the railing, before a slight creak sounded from the other side, the one they came through before. Yuka looked over, finding the doors open, but nobody coming through. Finally, closer to her, emerged a bluish figure. A slightly younger girl with a missing eye, who was walking straight for her. "EEK!" The girl screamed, before stumbling off the fence in a mad hurry, and heading towards the entrance she came through, steps echoing from behind.

She came back through, slamming the doors after her. She was panting quite heavily, not from the run, but out of panic. Looking around, she realized that Naomi and Seiko were gone. She was alone. Alone. Scared. All the ghosts wanted, wasn't it? She swallowed her anxiety, taking another glance to the surroundings. "Shinohara? Nakashima?" She called out, a little too quietly for her own sign. "Naomi?! Seiko?!" She repeated, making sure to be louder than before. "No... NO!"

She took a glance behind the shoe shelves, before walking over to the doors not far off, on the west. Before there, she started to sob, shoulders shaking. "Noooooooo... DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!" She wailed to herself helplessly. After that, she could feel herself hiccup, rhythmically changing between a sob and a hic. Without much thought, she went through the doors close by, and rushed onto the staircase outside. Downstairs was merely a corpse and a dead end, so instead, she headed upwards. On the second floor, she exited onto the hall.

Passing a girl's room, a camera flashed again. She gnawed at her lip, entering the room, a frown gracing her features. Upon entering, she found Morishige, phone out, standing above a corpse. His expression was blank as he straightened, looking at her with mild curiosity.

"You're... Mochida's sister..." he stated matter-to-factly.

Yuka nodded slowly. "U-um... uh..." Right. Where was Satoshi anyway? Naomi told her she saw him, but he decided to search for her and went missing. She promised to search for him soon, and she freely believed her. Why wouldn't she? Big brother talked a lot about her. If he trusted her, then so would she. "I swear, this place is going to drive us all batty. To think there'd be a corpse like this so close by... Hmm? You're shaking! What happened to Mochida?"

"H-he... he went somewhere..." Yuka sobbed, shying her face behind her hands. "... You poor thing. Come with me, I'll help you find him." He offered, quite nicely. She couldn't do that though. He was taking pictures of the dead people laying around. "No, uh... I'll be fine by myself, I think... Thank you though... I'll go search for Seiko. Or Naomi. Or big brother. Still... um, thanks..." She muttered, backing away. "I don't think you understand." Morishige whispered, advancing closer.

There was a twisted smile on his face, one she never saw appear on a human being before. It was mad, crazy... "...?" She squealed, pressing herself against the wall. "I'll help you search for Mochida." He repeated, and she screamed to the top of her lungs, twisting around and making a ran for it, heading to the doors on the east. At some point, she got caught, getting her sleeve caught by him. As she tried to squirm out of his grip, he returned to smiling again.

"Why are you running?" He kept asking.

In the situation, Yuka headed towards the entrance again, hoping to confuse him by the use of routes and get him lost somehow. As she finally came back, she sobbed a few times. "... It really feels like I'm going to burst." She cried, wiping the tears from her cheeks. She went past the cabinet that stood there, but as she passed it, the moment she went from it's reach, it fell.

Jumping, she screamed in fear. "EEEK!" That was her only escape... The only one... What was she going to do now? She was a lost cause. Nothing would save her. If only big brother was here. He was so strong. Brave. Sweet. He would comfort her, and protect her from that Morishige guy. As she went towards the west doors, she found herself hitting something. Or rather, someone. A taller boy stood before her, and she immediately recognized him as her dear brother. "Oh. I'm terribly sorry." A foreign voice sounded from above.

"Big brother... You lied! You lied! You said you wouldn't leave me by myself!" She screamed at him, only half-angry. As she looked up, she realized that this wasn't her brother. Before her stood a tall boy, taller than Satoshi. He had black hair, and darkly colored eyes. They looked purplish-blue to her, only a much darker shade. He wore a strange uniform with a blazer hanging over his shoulder. There was a chain sliding out of one of his pockets, as well.

Whoever it was, he looked save.


	9. Chapter 9

"Are you... injured?" The boy asked, his voice soft and calm. He didn't mind her hitting him, and instead, he was worried about her. It was a kindly thing to do of him, and she was grateful that the school at last didn't put him beside someone that was completely crazy. But she couldn't appreciate it fully.

This wasn't her big brother. And he wouldn't replace him.

"I-I'm so sorry!" She repeated, shaking her head as she attempted to steady herself. "I-I'm... My name is Mo-ochida Yuka..." She introduced herself finally, looking away for a moment. "Mine's Kizami Yuuya. I'm an eleventh grader at Byakudan Senior High. Yuka, was it? Were you also spirited away here...after performing the forbidden Sachiko charm?" He asked nonchalantly, leaning on the door's frame, gaze locked almost uncomfortably on the younger female. "Uhh... I dunno." She admitted, rubbing her elbow.

"I see. Given that you called me "big brother" a moment ago...I assume he's come here with you?" He continued to inquire, finally gluing his attention to something else. Nevertheless, it didn't mean he wasn't listening. No. Nothing like that. In fact, that Yuka girl was an interesting creature. Yes, definitely an interesting being. "... Big brother... Big brother!" She cried, closing her eyes tightly to stop tears from flowing. "You poor girl." He observed, watchful gaze returning to it's stand on her.

"I've also been separated from my little sister, and am presently searching for her." Kizami lied, faking an affectionate and sympathetic smile. To Yuka, it was very much honest, building her trust even further. "Your little sister..." She sniffled, feeling sorry for the poor girl that must be frantically looking for her brother. Instead, she was taking his precious time for stupid things. She should have been out searching for Satoshi anyway. What was she thinking? "She is." He confirmed, looking over to the entrance around the corner. "If you'd like, you may accompany me. We'll look for your big brother along the way. In a place like this, after all, the living should stick together as much as possible. My poor sister is probably off somewhere crying right now, just as you are... I simply must find her. So what do you say? Will you join the hunt?"

That question put her off, and she took her time answering. He might have been crazy, just hiding it from her. All he told her... It could have been a lie. A lie to lurk her somewhere, and torture her to her death. In Heavenly Host, the scenario was too possible not to be scary. Yet, it was much better than being alone. At the most, she could escape him. That could be a problem, but if she hid well...

Anyways, he didn't look like no crazy guy. In fact, he looked like a kind one, his sympathy melting her judgement. "Uhhh... hmm... Yes. Yes, please." She finally agreed, smiling slightly up to Kizami. "Help me find big brother!" She plead. "I will. Fear not. I'm certain we'll cross his path." He answered, outstretching his hand and straightening up. Without further hesitation, she skipped to his side and took it, squeezing in her own. It felt much bigger, but he wrapped it in such a way that only a little bit more would make it uncomfortably tight.

He led her up to the fallen cabinet, examining it with an almost bored expression. "Well, we're not getting anywhere with this in our way, so..." Just like that, he pulled the cabinet up, letting go of Yuka for the moment it took, groaning lowly. It didn't take him long to leave the furniture piece standing upright once more. On the floor were scattered millions upon millions of shards, making it close to impossible to pass through. Leaning in, Kizami picked up a piece of timber from the cabinet.

"We'll get back here, now..." He continued to pull her lightly towards the other wing. To Yuka's amazement, the ghost that chased her away was gone by now. She sighed quietly in relief, letting Kizami pull her forth in an unknown direction to her. They continued peacefully to the third floor. There was a path there, between a couple of holes, but a cabinet blocked the way and Satoshi couldn't pull it up. Or in a matter of things, do anything with it.

Without much straining himself, the boy pulled it up, like he did before. Unfortunately, the floor below the cabinet collapsed, leaving the cabinet to serve as the floor instead. It couldn't be that steady, but it was something. Staring at the event, Kizami pouted softly. "My... That was unexpected..." He muttered, before moving on into a darker corridor. Unlike Yuka, he didn't mind the hanging darkness all that much. He was pretty fine with it, to be honest.

They passed a corpse with bleach-white bones, the remaining of his clothing holding up an ID tag in view. "Akihiko Kagurazaka, 17, Misato Municipal Brotherhood High, Class 2-4." Kizami read out with his head titled. Leaving the corpse lone, he started to move on again.

They entered a corridor, where in the corner there was another corpse, a pit on the other. Looking down at his loose board, he laid it like a bridge to cross over, steadily walking over to the remains of the student. It was a tiny being with a piece of paper in her hand, a note written with felt-tip pen. "Daddy... I want to go back to Higansou..." Kizami read, before picking up her ID and reading that too. "Kanau Sachimura, 9, Distant Futures Elementary School, Class 4-3. There are even elementary-schoolers here? What a wretched fate... How on Earth did she get caught up in this mess?!" He asked in disbelief, shaking his head.

As they continued on, they found the corpse of a tall being. Laying on top of what looked to be his clothes once was the ID he owned. "Hatto Sudo, 17, Misato Municipal Brotherhood High, Class 2-4." He read, and nonchalantly started to move ahead. Not far away, they found another piece of skeletal remains. Based on size, the corpse belonged to a middle-schooler. Laying nearby was a tag. "Yuuki Tsuruta, 15, Hakuro #3 Junior High School, Class III-5." Yuka frowned, hoping quietly that her brother was safe.

As the moved on, they found yet another being, making Yuka momentarily feel sick. How many were there? This one belonged to a girl called Emi Urabe. It looked... "fresh", like she was killed not long ago. Her hair were of a green hue, eyes the same, stretched wide. She obviously suffered a harsh blow to the head, which was split open. Near to her corpse lay an ID, just as broken glasses. They looked like someone stepped on them. "Emi Urabe. 16. Byakudan Senior High School, Class 2-4." Yuka read.

Her gaze traveled to Kizami who stood beside her, looking astonished. "That's your... classmate, isn't it?" She choked out, using her handkerchief to wipe some saliva off her mouth, fixing her hair and closing her eyes. She looked almost peaceful, if not for the blood. "Yeah... Urabe... Poor girl. We have to keep moving though. There's gonna be more time to mourn later." He answered with fake sadness, moving towards an office instead. Custodian's Office.

There was a sound of a TV coming from within, but the doors wouldn't move as he tried to push them open. "C-could we check class 1-A? Please? If we get lost, we were supposed to meet up there... Big brother... He might be there..." Yuka idly scoffed her foot on the floor, looking away. "Of course." Kizami answered a little too bluntly for her own liking. He let her lead them to the classroom, as he personally never arrived there, and wouldn't know how to arrive there unless by accident. There was no time for something like that currently, however.

Seeing the empty classroom made Yuka flinch, shaking her head as she walked up to the podium. Maybe Ms. Yui, Shinozaki or Yoshiki were here again? It sounded improbable, but she wouldn't want to dwell on it.

"There's a message over here." The boy noted after a stretch of silence, gaze glued to the teacher's podium as he scanned over it.

* * *

Naomi woke up, stumbling to her feet. What happened? She took a look around, silent. Seiko was waking up, sitting in the corner roughly. The short-haired girl clenched onto her stomach, gagging a little. She felt sick, hungry and basically everything. Fatigue took over most of her brain, but she forced herself to stay awake. Falling asleep could mean immediate death. Seiko coughed, rubbing her neck, picking herself to her feet. "... Naomi? Are you alright?" She asked, voice hushed with concern. "Yeah... Fine..."

"W-where are we?"

"Don't know." Naomi admitted, frowning.

"Where's... Where's Yuka?!" Seiko asked quickly, looking around. There were no signs of the petite girl anywhere around, and if something happened to her... She wouldn't forgive herself. "I'm sure she's somewhere safe, don't worry." Seiko tried to comfort her friend, looking around. Based on the appearance and a few notes, she could easily guess that it was a staff room. It's excessively cramped with crumpled papers and documents stacked wherever there was room. There was a plaque on a cabinet, covered in red handprints, like someone with bloody hands continued to frantically caress it.

Seiko wondered off to the door, and tried to open it. Unsuccessfully. They wouldn't even budge the slightest. She moved around towards a corpse frowning down at it. It was blocked out, like it was impossible to move behind a little stack of papers. Naomi picked up a piece of a document. "Strange but True: Stories of the Occult. Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building. (-It really exists!). By Kou Kibiki." She read, having Seiko pop up beside her.

The brunette snatched the paper away, deciding to read it herself instead. "Over the course of several days, a series of incidents occurred within this town in which young children disappeared one after another. Their whereabouts were ultimately discovered through a thorough police investigation, but said findings were very much a worst case scenario. Three of the missing children were found dead in a concealed room beneath Heavenly Host Elementary, officially unused throughout the school's history. The fourth missing child was thankfully still alive, quaking in fear on the ground, presumably only moments away from demise when police arrived. Capping off this nightmarish scene was an adult male member of the school's teaching staff who seemed to be in a state of confusion. In his hands were a pair of bloodied scissors. (1973 / 9 / 18).

"The surviving elementary school student, after psychological counseling, gave official testimony fingering the scissor-man as abductor and murderer. The staff member in question was officially charged with multiple counts of abduction and murder of minors, as well as desecration of the dead. He was quickly taken to trial, where an insanity plea spared him from prison or death, but resulted in his compulsory admittance to a mental hospital.

Interestingly, the perpetrator of these crimes was none other than the school principal's own son, who was widely renowned for his jovial personality. However, due to a mental ailment of unknown origin, he'd begun losing his ability to speak little by little during his years teaching at Heavenly Host. Once his speech was all but gone, he began searching for alternate places of employment, which occupied him for several months prior to the crime. The results of this endeavor were not favorable, however, and most of his days were spent staggering idly through the streets. His reputation quickly degraded.

Several months after his admittance to the mental hospital, he managed to slip past the many nurses on duty and escape the premises. Immediately upon doing so, he made his way into the concealed basement room at Heavenly Host Elementary, where he took his own life by hanging." Seiko read the slightly longer post, breaking it evenly into pieces as she spoke. "The three children he had killed were all Heavenly Host Elementary students..."

The girl trailed off after that, shaking her head. This was horrible! Her voice was breaking at that point, since speaking properly seemed like an impossible task. Just like that, she just couldn't manage to read them like she did. Something like that was hard to take in. How could someone do something like that? "...but the one girl who was rescued from the gaping maw of eternal slumber was not. Following her close call, she and her family moved to another prefecture, far from the memories that no doubt would have otherwise haunted them forever.

Sadly, this was only the beginning of the misfortune that would hereafter plague the school, which had already earned itself many an unsettling rumor. Over the next few years, Heavenly Host would become a stage for countless incidents of rape, molestation and suicide. With student registration and attendance dwindling at an alarming rate in response to these crimes, the school was eventually shut down. (1975 / 11 / 18)." She covered her mouth, continuing to not only verbally but physically show her shock and anger with the situation.

"The 60-year-old principal at the time had become infamous as an eccentric who adorned his walls, doors and furniture with incomprehensible graffiti. Even later forensic analysis of the writings throughout his office could make little sense of his haphazardly-scribbled enumerations. And the day after the school's closure date was finalized, this aged eccentric threw himself from its roof. He broke his neck on impact, dying instantly.

As you can discern, the sordid history of this school is indeed awful - but there may be more to it than merely a series of unfortunate incidents. A power greater than any of us can comprehend may be acting as puppeteer from the shadows, maintaining an actual, tangible curse upon this property. And the key to it all lies with the sole survivor - the girl who bore witness to the brutal murders and mutilations of three children no older than she." Seiko continued on, while Naomi sat on one of the desks, crossing her legs and looking down.

Why would someone do that?

"The girl in the red dress. The one that got away.

"My investigation into the supernatural side of this horrific massacre is only just beginning. Rest assured, I intend to make this a regular feature. I've begun gathering data for a follow-up report, so stay tuned: The next issue promises to uncover more details in this morbidly fascinating story..." Seiko looked at the picture adorning the page. "According to this article it's the girl in the red dress we saw earlier. But why would someone that wasn't killed haunt the school?"


	10. Chapter 10

"I dunno, but it doesn't feel right..." Naomi murmured, mostly to herself. "But, then again, what does?" She shrugged it off, wondering off to investigate the room further. Laying on the ground she found a bloody cassette, which made her frown. Why did it have the stains? What happened to it? And most of all, would they be able to read it? There wasn't a possibility of finding anything to work it on... Or at least, she guessed so. It appeared to be from a digital camera, but that's all she could tell. The label over the top read: Kibiki Research Data 2005-11-19.

"... Sensei..."

Seiko let out a muffled squeal of terror at the unknown voice, bringing herself closer to Naomi. She inched towards the doors, trying to open them again. Without further success. "To worry so much for another's well-being that it torments you to the core... It's an exquisite stigmata that afflicts the living and the dead alike." Continued the foreign voice, and as she turned, she found Naomi standing before a girl with black hair and blue eyes, some beads in her hair also.

"Um... Who are you?" Naomi asked, staring straight at the teen ahead. She had odd eyes, like those of a dead fish, cloudy and lifeless. "I'm... the spirit of a girl who died here." The teen explained bluntly. "Oh... I-I'm sorry, I suppose." Naomi answered, getting slightly flustered. That must be a sensitive subject, no? "Happiness and unhappiness are linked. Whenever one attempts to gain good fortune with little effort, there is always a risk."

"What does that mean, miss?" Seiko joined into the conversation, curiosity lining her tone. "You and your friends have become trapped in this school because you performed the Sachiko Ever After charm... and messed it up." The girl explained, not exactly answering the question properly, but answering another. "Sachiko... You mean that paper doll thing we all did? How did we mess it up?"

"One of you chanted the phrase too many times, or too few. The number of participants determines the number of repetitions that must be spoken. And somebody goofed." The girl shrugged nonchalantly, not really caring too much for the nine fates that were at the edge of living. Well, a few less at this point. "..." Was it really? Naomi remembered that she had spoken it nine times, and was certain that Seiko would do that too. Who would do that, then? Or maybe, the teen was lying? Trying to put fault on someone else.

"It may have been on purpose. One of your friends probably thought the whole thing was silly, and just didn't bother to count. Or maybe a misguided member of your group didn't want the fun to end, and knowingly flubbed the charm in a vain attempt at prompting a do-over." The teen moved on, blaming different individuals at turn. "No! They wouldn't do that!" Seiko protested.

"Even if it wasn't on purpose, some of your friends have a tendency not to take things very seriously, no? It's not inconceivable that they'd mess up... and just say, "Oh well! It's not like I'll ever be found out!" ...without even realizing that their actions would ultimately doom you all. Heeheehee! No one's owned up to it, right? Not a single one of your friends has said to you, "I screwed up! I'm so very sorry!"" The girl giggled, a smile appearing on her face.

_What got her so happy? _Naomi asked herself, stepping back. "My apologies. I've proposed far too many likely scenarios, it seems." She giggled. "Perhaps it's the nature of my job. I have long since abandoned my writings, after all. You do...still have your scrap of paper doll, no?" She asked, changing the subject like the last one suddenly wasn't as interesting.

"Be sure to hang onto it. And hang tight. Treat it like a memento. A memento...of those who are dear to you."

"Sorry to leave you hangin', but we have to go. We have to find our classmates..." Seiko interrupted her, slightly blunt. She couldn't really help herself, though. What was she supposed to do? If what the girl said was indeed true, they would have to ask their classmates, no? But before that could happen, they had to be found. "Such concern for your friends...and all the impulses that go with it, spurring the heart into action... It's a truly noble sentiment. That's all charms really are, you know. They represent one's regards for other people, they're like microcosms of the soul... Whether it be love or hate, all you need is a truly strong emotion to set them off. The stronger it is, the more powerful the charm."

Seiko blinked, inching closer to Naomi with a whimper in fear. "Splend... mans... hook..." The teen started to chant, and Naomi closed her eyes in pain. What was happening? She could feel herself burning up. She cringed in pain, causing Seiko to try and push the girl, at least scoff her. "Hey! Stop it! Please! Stop!" She begged, shooting worried looks towards her crush, who was still feeling the burning throbbing pass through her body.

"Frigide...tsui...ball...Ball...tsui...frigide... Hook...mans...splend..." The girl concluded, smiling widely, almost abnormally. We will not allow anyone to stand in our way. Those who do will suffer without mercy! Now go. Go to the ones who occupies your thoughts..." She cheered, doing a little twirl. "Though... You probably wouldn't make it in time... Hehehe... Hahahahaha!" She laughed for what seemed to be forever, the sounds slowly echoing as she disappeared, taking Naomi and Seiko with her.

* * *

At the voice from behind, the girl perked up, walking back to the podium to read whatever Kizami had found. It was a message from the class rep, Ayumi Shinozaki that read: "I have found an outdoor walkway on IF leading to a second wing. I'm going to go check it out. If you see this, Ms. Yui, please come find me. Somebody left some kind of hidden message over there on 3 old school flyers. Apparently, you have to lay them one on top of the other to read it. -Shinozaki." Yuka read, blinking a few times.

"We have to go there, please! Maybe Shinozaki knows where big brother is..." Nodding, Kizami led her to the second wing. As they reached the spot, they went to the east, where beforehand the cabinet blocked the way. Out of sheer curiosity, they headed towards the Music classroom, piano music once again sounding from within with it's creepy tune. Looking down at a fallen cabinet, blocking the way to a desk, that seemed to have something underneath it. With ease, the teen lifted the cabinet and let Yuka walk by, before joining her as well.

"Kaori: Be very careful around the green goo spattered all over the floor. It can kill you. I ran into a spiritualist here, who left behind a pair of shoes blessed with holy water. If one person wears them, and all in attendance join hands, then - and only then - is it safe to traverse the accursed green goo.

Whenever I see the sorrowful bodies of those who died here, I feel as if I may go mad with worry. I beg of you, survive these ordeals. Live!" Kizami read, while his companion knelt down and reached under the desk, scooping out a pair of shoes. They were made of black leather with a barely imperceptible blue glow. As she lifted them close, the music stopped, sending a shiver down her back. "Try them on." The boy urged, while obediently, Yuka slipped on the pair, taking her own in her hands.

"I know where the goo is!" Yuka said with a little glee to her tone, mixed with pride. It was all for the better if she could leave the place earlier. As they began to head up towards the stairs, and the corridor that would lead to the goo, Yuka stopped for a moment before a statue. It was cheaply made, produced for use in still-life paintings. She stopped before it, studying it closely. "Wasn't this in the Art room before?" She asked herself, inaudible. Hearing the murmur, but not the context, Kizami only looked down at her. "Hmm? What's the matter?" He asked with fake concern.

"Uh, umm... N-Nothing. Probably just my imagination. Would you mind if we went to check the Art classroom?" With a shake of a head in response as a 'no', she began to walk over to the classroom nearby. Something inside of it also changed. In the very middle of the room laid a note. "- 3. - O. Wait! Remember the message Shinozaki left us?" Yuka took out two more flyers and layered them over each other.

"SEARCH DESK IN MUSIC ROOM. HT SIDE BY THE WINDOWSIGR. DESK FROM THE BACK ECS NDO. Do you think it's about the shoes?" She mused, and her companions simply shrugged. "That's all that was in there, right?" The girl nodded, leaving the notes to be in the odd class. They wouldn't be needed anymore. As she looked around, the weird girl from before... She was gone too. Frowning, she let herself be led outside, and towards the goo.

Carefully, Yuka took a step on it, scared to be hurt. Nothing. She opened one eye, which she closed in instinct. Grinning, she reached out her hand for Kizami to hold onto, before walking forward, through the length of the goo. At the top, she found something sparkling on the floor. Picking it up, she looked cautiously at a sort of crystal. "Hmm? What seems to be the problem, Yuka?" She snapped out of her thoughts, looking up. Was she straining again? "I...uh...really have to go to the bathroom." She admitted.

"Oh? Don't tell me you've been holding it in all this time, have you?" At the next question, she could feel her cheeks become warm in embarrassment. "Uh-huh...I...ohh... Ooooooh..." She moaned, feeling pain burn through her stomach again. "My, my! Well, we'd best find you a place to relieve yourself, then. Though I seem to recall our options being rather limited..." Kizami mused, looking around carefully as he spoke. "There was a toilet downstairs, if I recall correctly. Would you like to check that?" Yuka nodded slowly.

As they began to head towards the bathroom, locked with charms, they stopped before a corpse. She saw that girl before. She run away from her and Naomi and Seiko. She was not breathing. Her eyes had a hollow appearance to them, yet still retain a tiny echo of life - and reflect a palpable sense of terror. It almost seems as if she could "snap out of it" at any moment, stand up and walk away. The corpse is so fresh, simply being in its presence is disquieting. It's skin still warm in touch.

Yuka exhaled softly. It was another of Kizami's classmates, based on the uniform. She retched and gagged at the sight, turning away. "A-Are you all right? ...This is...terrible..." She didn't reply, panting uncontrollably in a struggle to get the image out of her mind. "Yuka, have you seen the ghosts of the children?" Deciding to finally reply, she nodded. "Yeah... I have..."

"I've been reading the school flyers and dying messages scattered throughout this school...and it seems the ghost of the man who killed those children is in here somewhere as well." The girl gasped, covering her mouth with her hands in shock. Disregarding the behavior, he continued. "He's apparently quite large, and wields a hammer. You'd better be on your guard. I've had a great many of my friends...many, many, many people...killed by that man and those wretched children!" He sounded angrier as he spoke, and Yuka gasped softly. "...At any rate, it seems clear we should stick together, as there's simply no telling what may happen if we part ways."

"Come. We must find my sister and your brother, before... before it's too late." He finished curtly, taking her hand in his and heading towards the sealed bathroom once more. As they reached the spot, he fumbled in his pocket for the crystal. Pulling it out, he stood before the doors with the object in hand, and successfully, the flyers burned. Along with the charms, the crystal also was destroyed, shattering into dust. "Seems usable now. Will you be alright by yourself?"

"Uh-huh... I-I'll be okay." Yuka agreed, slowly walking towards the doors, eyeing them. "Get to it, then. I'll be waiting right here for you." Nodding, she murmured a thanks, before walking inside, disappearing in the restroom without another word.


	11. Chapter 11

"Where am I? Naomi? Ulgh... My head's sore..." A brunette girl murmured, rubbing the back of her head to soothe the throbbing. Seiko picked herself up carefully, blinking a few times. Taking a lood around, she could easily determine she was in the main building. "Where's Naomi, though?" She asked herself, shaking her sore head. She had to find her. She had to. Without much thought, she head out forth, putting little attention to where she was going. Just as long as she could find Naomi, she would be fine any direction.

"Shinohara... This way." The girl perked up, passing through one hallway after the other, stopping to listen to the familiar voice. "M-Mochida?" She asked, fear tightening her stomach. Was he here? A ghost, perhaps? Would he... hurt her? She clenched her fists, ready to flee. "Please take care of Naomi... She's on the verge of snapping. Come on, this way." She reluctantly relaxed, following the trails of the voice. "Who are you? Mochida? Is that you?" She continued to ask, without an answer.

Sighing, she moved on. If Naomi really was in danger, she should hurry up. Moving up north, she eventually got to a stairwell. In the corner sat Naomi, a little faint and seemingly in pain. Immediately after seeing the figure, she sprinted over. "NAOMI! Nao...mi?" As she grew closer, the girl disappeared. Just like that, like she was never anything more than a piece of her imagination. "N-Naomi?" She whispered, hearing a ringing sound. Following, she managed to find her way into a class. The same class that she found Mochida.

She found it harder to breathe, tears threatening to roll down her cheeks. Nearby, she found Naomi's cellphone. With air caught in her throat, she picked it up. Answering the call, she pulled her hand up to her ear, not necessarily wanting to. " . . . . . ." The creepy voice from before once again sounded from the other end, giving the space for a woman to speak up. "Naomi? Are you there?! Answer me! Please! Naomi! Please, just let me hear your voice!" The voice continued.

"Hello? Mrs. Nakashima? It's me! Seiko?" She tried to helplessly connect with the woman, unsuccessful. A crackling sob came through, followed by another series of pleading and begging. "Please... Just say something! I'm your mom, Naomi! God, please...don't let anything have happened to her! . . . . . . . . ."

Dropping the phone, she stumbled back, out into the corridor again. "Stop it! Stop it!" Seiko cried, hesitantly picking it back up. She had to give it back to Naomi. She walked around the third floor, reaching the girl's lavatory where... Well, where she didn't want to come back. A voice lurked her inside, however. "Hello, dear... Have you came for a visit?" Strangely, it was Naomi's voice that now rang in her ears.

"Naomi?" Seiko murmured, walking inside. "Hehe... I missed you." The familiar voice giggled lowly. "Ha. Well, I missed you too." Another, foreign voice sounded. Why was she talking to someone? "Naomi...?" She was cut short by the mention of her name.

"Have you seen Seiko earlier?"

"No, why?"

"She was trying! _Again! _I swear, this is getting kind of boring. She's just so stupid! And she actually thinks she has a chance with me!"

Following that sentence came a laugh, while Seiko sobbed softly. Did she really have no chance? "I know right? She should have given up long ago!" The other voice said, and Seiko came forth to open the door. She couldn't, though. With her feelings and hopes in ruins, she started to run out of the bathroom. Something stopped her though. This time... she sensed a presence there with her.

She returned to the stall, attempting to open it again. "Glgh... Hrng... Urk... Ahhhlk..." Hearing the moans of distress, she kicked into the doors. Seeing that they were old, they easily broke. The girl stood in shock for a moment. "NAOMI! What are you doing?!" She screamed, seeing her friend hanging from a rope on the neck, like she did before. Quickly, she tried to repeat what the other teen once done for her, picking her up in her arms uncertainly. She let herself hoist her on the shoulders. "I should loosen that rope..." She thought out loud. As she managed to do so, Naomi started to cough, free to breathe again.

"Stay with me... Please!" Seiko called to her, sobbing in the merge of the situation. She reached up behind her to unfasten the rope. She succeeded, and the rope went limply off, sliding off the other girl's shoulders to hang lifelessly. Against all odds, it seemed that her friend would live. She carefully let herself lay her down, kneeling before her. "A-are you okay? Please be! Breathe, that's good!" She told her, tears rolling down her cheeks.

In her arms, Naomi chocked, coughing and wheezing in a try to get her breath back. "S... Seiko?" She finally whispered, looking up at the face before her own, smiling softly down at her. "Right. You scared me... What happened?" Naomi didn't return her smile, instead, started to cry herself. "Huh? What's wrong? Is it sore? It's gonna lea-" She was cut off by her friend tightly embracing her in a hug.

"Dumbass! Get here sooner next time!" She cried into her neck. "Hey, now, you planning on doing that again?" Seiko tried to joke, but the girl only began to weep again, mumbling something under her breath. "What am I doing? Ah, sorry, Seiko!" She said hurriedly, moving away. "Ah, no need. I quite liked it." She admitted in her perverted nature, grinning with her catty smile visible clearly. "Is your neck alright?"

"My neck? ...What was I doing, anyway? I fell down the stairs, and then... when I came to, you were here."

"You don't remember anything?"

"I guess not. After I fell...I heard a snap in my leg, and figured I'd broken it...but it turned out it was just the splint that you had used on my sprained ankle earlier." Naomi murmured, struggling to remember. "Don't tell me, if it's hurting you. I'll be okay. Just... Please don't do something like that again." Seiko said, shaking her head. "Like what, exactly?" Asked the girl clueless, leaving her friend to tilt her head at her. "You tried hanging yourself?" She murmured with concern.

"I...did...? ...That's...not possible... But there is...a stinging pain...around me entire neck... Did I really...?" Seiko nodded solemnly, looking down at her hands, resting neatly on her knees, rubbing against them. "Come on. We should get out of here as soon as possible. Are you okay to stand by yourself?" Naomi nodded, slowly lifting herself to her feet along with Seiko, who took her under her arm. She didn't really need it, but didn't want to hurt her either. "Where should we go?" Seiko asked. "I heard Yuka's voice on the second floor. We should go check it out!" Naomi offered, and so, the two left the restroom to continue their search for the young Mochida.

* * *

A few pants could be heard as a figure stepped into the room, looking around. He seemed to be plentifully relieved to find Kizami at the spot. "...Kizami...? Kizami, is it really you?!" He called, stepping into view. For a brief second, Kizami looked surprised. So he wasn't dead, hmm? He could easily play around with that. "Kurosaki! You're alive!" He asked, trying to sound as believable as he could.

"You too! Man, are you a sight for sore eyes..." The boy trailed off, studying his friend closely for any signs of injuries whatsoever. Luckily, there were none, and he could tell easily that he was okay, which was a major relief. Goddammit, at last he wouldn't be alone! "Finally, someone else who isn't dead... godforsaken place this is..." Kurosaki murmured, shaking his head. Still, he was smiling all the time. "I was at my wit's end just now, let me tell you. Outside of this school, there's nothing but trees, as far as the eye can see. I thought about braving the wilderness, but it seems like one of those "forests of the lost" you see in video games. Once you enter, you can never leave."

He compared the situation, which wasn't really the best thing, since Kizami wasn't a fan of games, therefore the metaphor could not pass through as intended. "So what the hell is this place, anyway?! Damn it all... There are actual, honest-to-goodness ghosts in here, you know!" He said, expression darkening as he did, gaze glued to the teen before him.

Closing his eyes in thought, Kizami nodded slowly. "I think we may be stuck here for good. There's no way out, for any of us." He muttered solemnly. "...Did you see...? Mitsuki...in the next room... She's...dead..." Kurosaki exclaimed with disbelief lining his tone, shaking his head. She should have lived. She should have gotten out of here, with Emi and Tohko. "Yeah, I saw." Heartlessly said his friend, untouched by the situation.

"I just don't know how to handle this. I...feel like there's...a certain number...A certain number of dead bodies a person's expected to see within his lifetime... And I swear, in the last hour alone, I think I've far surpassed my quota... Ahhhh... Just yesterday, Mitsuki dumped her boyfriend after finding out he was cheating on her with three other women..." He dreamily murmured, not ending his last sentence properly. "She's been really down about it all morning.

"So I sent her stupid text messages during class to cheer her up. She seemed mad about it during study hall...but then she sent me a "thank you" message the very next period. I think I was actually able to lift her spirits a little. Now, though...she's gone. Killed by actual spirits. I guess it was those children..." He continued on with his story, which didn't work a single thing on Kizami. In fact, as Kurosaki's attention was turned to the story thoroughly, he pulled out a single item from his pocket. An abnormally wide smile stretching across his face.

For a few seconds, he twisted the item, pressing the tip gently onto the tip of his finger. As his friend remembered, he slowly approached, taking slow yet determined, long strides in his direction. Seeing the movement through the corner of his eye, Kurosaki turned to Kizami again. A small gasp escaped him. He... He had a knife?! What was he doing anyway? Feeling a chill creep up his spine, he started to stumble back. Looking behind, he found a hole in the way.

If he backed away more, he would be thrown into it, and die anyway. He could try and run, but he was shorter and not as muscled as Kizami, so that would be pointless. With shock pulsing in his veins, he would either trip, or not be able to move at all. That was it. He was doomed, paralyzed in his spot. "... Wh... What... Huh...?" He quickly mumbled. Even if with no escape, he could not fully give up on life.

"Kizami... What...are you doing...?"

Before he could finish his sentence, he could feel the blade fix itself in his skin. He grasped his stomach, falling limp. The knife still found it's way inside of his stomach, not letting the pain slide off so easily. It successfully dug almost throughout the width of his body. Blood started to sprout from the corner of his mouth, as eventually, in a slow motion, he was released.

The pain was an inch from unbearable, proving itself stronger by second. Down on his knees, he groaned loudly in pain, looking down through squinted eyes at a wound that now washed his uniform in blood. Right around the hip. "Oolgh...nnnnnrrg...oaaahh... N-No...ooohh...ooooooOOOOAAAAAGGH!" He screamed in his agony, chocking on his own blood as it flowed into his throat. "Nnn... gggahhhHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Unfortunately for him, it wasn't over yet. No, Kizami wasn't yet done. As he slowly laid down, body shaking. To his surprise, another source of pain dug into his side, straight where his fresh wound was.

Naturally, he screamed to the top of his lungs, praying for everything to be over. In a single motion, in a single kick, he was send through the hole, disappearing from Kizami's sight. "KI-ZA-MII!" He heard, like music to his ears, the same twisted grin on his face. If he let him lay around the area, Yuka would find him... And he couldn't do that. She would run away. Loosing prey wasn't his thing.

A thud.

Silence.

Kizami closed his eyes. "Within these walls...it doesn't matter if you're killed by them or killed by me." He reopened them, revealing them to have widened, showing his pleasure and perhaps... craziness, in the tiny depths as he laughed softly. "Either way, you're killed."


	12. Chapter 12

In lead, Seiko skipped ahead, leaving the brunette girl to walk calmly behind her. She made sure that her pace wasn't too quick, so that she could easily catch up in case she fell back. Suddenly, from behind, she could hear a little thump, like something has fallen. Hauling to a stop, she turned around to look what it was, frightened that perhaps something fell over her crush. She wouldn't forgive herself if that happened. Compared to the scenario, the situation was a little better. She actually only fell, which was much much better. "Ack!"

With a frown of concern, Seiko knelt over her. "Are you okay, Naomi?" In a sort of response, the girl started to sputter and cough frantically. The injury to her neck must be worse than she at first assumed. "Sorry. I suddenly...got really dizzy...and tripped over my own feet...and now everything's...turning...white..."

"Naomi? NAOMI!" Seiko's eyes widened in fear. Where could she carry her? Luckily, Naomi was lightweight, so with a tiny struggle, she got her onto her back like on a piggy back ride. "Come on... Where can we take you...? M-maybe... The Infirmary? I'll take a look at your ankle then, how about that?" She asked, like she was still conscious, carefully heading towards the room. Last time, they had a fight and all... But this time would be different. She wouldn't leave her. She wouldn't make the same mistake.

As they arrived, she laid her on the same bed as before, sitting herself on the other one. "So you're okay! That's good... You're breathing's back to normal. You should be okay." She murmured, taking a peek through the makeshift bandage on her ankle. It seemed fine to her. In boredom, knowing the room already, she started to swing her legs a little over the edge.

"HELP! HELP ME! PLEASE! HEEEELLLPPP!"

Whatever that was, it sounded familiar. The scream was high-pitched, thrilled thoroughly with sheer terror. Wasn't that Yuka? "I'll be right back Naomi, I promise. Please... Shout if anything happens." Seiko said quickly, planting a gentle kiss on Naomi's forehead. It may be the last time she saw her... Shaking her head, she quickly run out, searching the corridors quickly for signs of Satoshi's little sister, with no success whatsoever.

Eventually, she just settled to exploring. She could make a move forth, take Naomi in a safe way to find the others. Maybe even bring someone back! She moved steadily to the third floor. Somehow, a large hole in the west hall appeared, blocking further access. There was nothing up on the floor, nor the second, so instead, she went down to the first one. Maybe she could find something new there. At the staircase was a corpse. Yuuya Kumada. A 17 year old in Tendo Senior High School.

She moved past it, and down the stairs, pausing for a moment. "The walkway was just at the bottom of these stairs! Onto the right! Yuka should be there, I think..." The girl shrugged gently, beginning to head in the direction she herself just voiced out to remember better.

Something was in the way, though.

More specifically, a wall. It wasn't there before! "Yuka? What... No! NO!" She started to tear up, banging into the wall, almost causing it to collapse at the spot she was hitting. "I'm so sorry Mochida! So, so sorry! What am I supposed to do now?" Seiko cried, sliding against the wall onto the ground, burying her face in her knees. "ANSWER ME GODDAMMIT! ANSWER ME!" She shouted, finally snapping for a moment.

She couldn't believe this! She... She hurt Mochida, all by accident... She killed him... She was a murderer... And now, she couldn't save either his and her love, nor his sister. What friend was she? "I hate this! I want to get out! Mochida... I'm so sorry. Please... If you can hear me... Tell me what to do. This is for your little sister! I'm trying to protect her, can't you see?! I'm trying!" She sobbed, wiping her cheek with her sleeve.

"I really am..."

* * *

Kizami stood before the toilet, waiting patiently for Yuka to emerge. Let's just say he kept himself plentifully busy. Poor Kurosaki... Well, as least he would believe so. He didn't bear no feeling, no friendship to that dumbass. He knew plentifully well that he would die anyway, why did he act so surprised? "Hah!" He breathed, looking down through the hall his 'friend' fell through. Darkness. Nothing. Too bad. He would give a lot to see his masterpiece. But it was not accessible, sadly.

"Eyaaaagh!" A tiny scream sounded from inside the bathroom, making the teen turn to face the direction, straightening up. Almost the same instant, Yuka ran out, fear clear in her expression. Without a word, she collapsed against the wall and began to sob into her hands. "What's the matter Yuka?" Kizami asked, striding forth. "They're... All full..." She hicced, not opening her eyes. "Hmm?" He muttered in confusion, walking inside the bathroom himself.

Ahead stood six cabins, each having a rope attached to the barrier attached above them, the hints of someone hanging themselves inside. Every single one looked close to identical. "Wh-What the hell? Who did this?! ...Or...did they...do it themselves...?" Despite sounding surprised, a small smile lined his features. He approached the nearest one, trying to open it, but each time, the doors bounced off the corpse and slammed themselves closed. "...That's quite a stench..." He murmured, moving along the cabins.

On the floor before one of them lay an ID tag. Mari Rokuhara. Age: 16 .Shibagami Private Senior High School, Class 1-A. He frowned, and continued to another one he noticed, pulling it up. Kotowe Kuroyama Age: 15. Hakuro #3 Junior High School, Class III-5. All left from only two pupils that died in the bathroom. Shrugging it off, he walked over to the sinks, where he found a heart-shaped mirror, pink in color. Around lay strands of black hair. Around the object, and over the top of it, were pierced bloody handprints. "Seems like a pretty modern design, similar to what a lot of girls in my class use. After being trapped in here for awhile...I wonder how the owner's face must have looked the last time she took this thing out..."

He noted, before heading to the exit. For a second, he hesitated, turning around for a second, running his hand into his hair. "A great many lives ended in this room..." He noticed simply, his eyes widening again, along with a wide smile. A grin, even. "...Hua...ha...HOO!" He laughed. Wheezing, he stepped out of the restroom, laughing along the way in glee. Panting, he approached closer to Yuka, advancing like a wild cat stalking prey. "Poor little Yuka..." He said, almost tauntingly.

"With all those bodies in there, you'll never be able to relieve yourself!" He giggled, causing the girl to shiver. "Well, then...heh...Shall we be off?" He asked nonchalantly, beginning to step away. _My dear little sister... I'll protect you from those horrible ghosts in here, I promise... You will not have to face the terrible fate of meeting them... Hehe... Hahahahaha...!_

* * *

A blue-haired girl stood on the covered walkway, shivering against the cool air that dominated outside. And with all the rain... It sure was a struggle to keep warm. But that was the least of her worries. "Sure is...cold... Where the hell did Ms. Yui and Kishinuma go, anyway?!" She asked herself, shaking her head. She could feel herself shiver more, feeling the obnoxious feeling of being lone creep into her realization. "Don't leave me by myself! I'm scared, you know..." She pleaded, with no response.

"Maybe I...should try going back...to room 1-A... If I stay in the other building for too long, my head's really going to start pounding..." She began to get lost in her own thought, looking out to the second wing. "..." Without another word, she turned around and walked inside the main building again. Something was off, though. She could hear the distant laughter ring in her ears, causing her to sink lower onto the ground, covering her ears in an attempt to cover the sound.

"...?! Stop it! Just stop it already!" She begged, hearing a few childish voice repeat in unison, "We were killed by an educator..."

"Huh?!" She stopped out of nowhere, looking up to spot a ghost. A young girl with long black hair, wearing a torn red dress. "AGGH!" She screamed in fear, feeling that her life was on the verge. But the spirit halted, then turned and fled immediately after being noticed. "...That was...the girl who wasn't involved in Suzumoto's death... She seemed different from the others...lonelier...but why?" Ayumi thought out loud, cocking her head.

Nearby was a body, and so she slowly approached to check it out. Judging off size, it was either a junior or senior high school student. "Seiko Tanaka Age: 13. Aizome Junior High School, Class I-2." She read, blinking down at the poor girl that lay before her. For a single moment, she was scared for Shinohara, that it might have been her corpse, but that was strongly illogical. She turned to a note above the corpse. "Treat tomorrow like a certainty. That's... that's a nice quote, actually." She read, smiling to herself.

"If you're alive now, trust that you'll still be alive then. If I recall, it's Tachibana's turn for day duty tomorrow... I want to go back to class. I hate the idea that I might not be able to ever again. I swear I'll take my schoolwork more seriously from now on. Let's not go that way. The air... is really heavy. I makes my ears ring." She sighed, looking away from the note. "Best head back to 1-A before going any farther. Just to check in."

Carefully, she headed towards the classroom, hoping to find Kishinuma or Ms. Yui there. As she passed through one of the hallways, she found a ghost nearby. Blue. That was good. She slowly approached it, offering the tiniest smile. These were the helpful ones, right? "Whether you're facing a flyer on the wall or just standing in the middle of the room, if you've got a hunch, there's something nearby. Never give up."

That should do enough. She'll remember that. As she headed towards the classroom, she decided to try and explore, to see if anything new could be found around. As she passed around, Ayumi paused before another corpse. Whoever it was, must have died only hours, minutes or perhaps seconds ago. The corpse was very much still fresh. "Yuma Misuki." She read the name, not bothered by the whole ID. Next to her, catching her attention, was an old piece of crumpled paper.

"Well, Yuma, guess this is as far as you go. Exhaustion has set in, so it looks like it's the end of the road. My classmate Tomoe Mizuki climbed the fence around the outdoor walkway and slipped into the woods outside the school. It's been three days now, and she still hasn't come back.

All the while, I've been stuck here getting chased around by the ghost of a girl with nothing above her jawline. And I've not only twisted my ankle, but also got glass cuts all over my wrists, so I'm in no condition to keep running. I keep hearing this snip, snip, snip sound of scissors, everywhere I go. I can't tell if it's real, or if it's just a ringing in my ears.

I wish I'd just die already - get it over with, so I can finally rest. Maybe I can have my head cut off at the jaw like that li. That's all?" Ayumi said with a frown. She must have died writing that message. Heading north, she stopped before another ghost. Red. "It hurts... It hurts so much..." The girl whimpered, trying to step away. "Even in death...it still hurts... Now...and always..." With the conclusion, she started to head away, not trusting the place one bit because of the being.

She began to head towards 1-A again, determined to get to the classroom as quick as it was possible. On the way, she stopped before another flyer to read it, in case it contained important messages. "Congratulations on your arrival! Our most heartfelt blessing we other thee! We'll be anxiously awaiting your death. And once everyone's dead, that's when we'll all be able to meet again.

And then, the conquest begins!" Ayumi covered her mouth, quickly striding away. She headed north, finding another body there. The body was young, for her liking a middle school, though she couldn't be sure. "Yohsuke Maebana. 15." She read, shrugging. The corpse was also fresh, which scared her mercilessly. She started to head onto the second floor instead. She walked steadily into the 1-A. On one end there wasn't much on the bottom part, apart from a crumpled up note.

"There's one thing I've learned from all of this: The children are victims too. They're not at fault here. they're not the ones we should hate. Their murderer is the one who created this cycle of resentment and cruelty. Their murderer is our true enemy." With confusion, Ayumi walked out of the room again, knowing that nothing more was to be found. She instead headed to the top part, approaching the podium where her message was wrote, still clearly visible.

"No one's responded yet. I wonder if anyone's even seen it... My message..." Shaking her head, she walked away, disappointed that no-one else made it into the classroom. Instead, she started to head into a random room. There was a few new things around there. First, she walked over to a note. "I'm so glad we could find each other before we died.

"We'll set off on this journey together, holding hands forevermore. There's nothing to be scared of as long as we have each other. We know there was meaning in our lives, because we were fortunate enough to find our soulmates...to find one another amongst all the fish in the sea. To our mothers and our fathers, take heart: we died happy, and wanted for nothing.

And when we finally pass over to the other side, our hunger pains will be gone. We'll fly up to heaven, and be joyous forevermore. Our only regret is the pain our deaths will cause you. But one day, we'll meet again, up in the golden realm of the ever-after.

Lexern Senior High School  
Class 3-2, [Hotaru Kanzaki]  
Class 2-4, [Nayuto Minatogawa]."

The note above that one, hanging on a wall, read: "Idiots. There's no getting to Heaven from here."


	13. Chapter 13

Reading the note, Ayumi gulped, passing over to a couple of corpses. They were laying next to each other. Both large enough to prove they were most likely high schoolers. They must have died hand in hand, and even now, their bones appeared to have their hands intertwined. "Hotaru Kanzaki and Nayuto Minotagawa. Rest in peace. Together." Ayumi murmured to the two. Carefully, she passed beside them, to a lever.

It was stuck in place, and wouldn't budge. There does seem to be space for it to go down one more notch, but the mechanism is locked. There's a tiny, peculiarly-shaped keyhole in its base. After checking that, she started to head outside and north from there. Suddenly, she tripped in the middle of her way, landing square on some glass, which pierced into the palm of her hand.

"Ack! Oww..." She muttered, picking herself up with a frown as she started at her bleeding limb. "Owww. Ow. Ow. Ow. It's bleeding pretty badly... I hope my handkerchief can stop it... Just found out I'm anemic yesterday, too. Great timing, huh... Starting to get dizzy now... Not good. I need to sit down or something..." She muttered, looking around. There was no safe place here. At least, she doubted so.

With that thought, she simply continued on, reading yet another note. "It's not like you're going to be rescued, after all." That wasn't true. It was a matter of time Kishinuma or Mochida found her, and then... then she'll be rescued! They'll find everyone else and safely return home! Apart from Suzumoto... The only idea of the poor girl made her sob dryly, being cleared of tears for now. "We already tried everything we could to get out. We exhausted every possibility. You might live another few days - maybe even a week or two, if you tough it out. But can you stand to live that long with nothing to eat? Nothing to drink? No change of clothes? Dying is just a whole lot easier.

So come on, join us. We're all waiting for you. It might even be fun. There are so many ways to die! Just imagine the possibilities! But don't tarry. We're waiting, after all. Waiting to welcome you... Gllllllllgggghhhh... grrrrrrggggghhhh... Shut up! Shut up shut up shut UP!" She shouted at the flyer, quickly running into classroom 2-A. It was empty, apart from a shelf crammed with old, yellow books of weird titles.

One of the books was sticking out more than the others, pleading to be noticed. "Circumnavigating the Ancient World." Ayumi read, picking it up to read. It might contain something important. "The cardinal directions are to be laid flat upon a clock face, with additional divisions placed amongst them to mimic fully time's twelve notches. Beginning with the Rat affixed at due north, the twelve signs of the Chinese zodiac shall be labeled clockwise around this timepiece compass. Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig, then back to Rat." Ayumi read out loud, looking quite confused.

"For ease of remembrance, it's best to equate each direction with both its zodiac sign and its hour on the clock. North, then, is both the Rat and 12:00. East is the Rabbit, and east by southeast is the Dragon. This is the basis of circumnavigation within the ancient world." Shrugging, she left the classroom, noting everything beforehand, in case it might have been useful.

With nothing left on the floor, she headed downstairs. She started to head towards the Infirmary, where she last saw Yoshiki. Well, it was actually the corridor leading to it, but she couldn't bear the sight of Mayu. As she walked in, the room was empty, apart from a single object laying on the floor: the cursed doll.

Scowling in protest, she moved closer to inspect it, although nothing much has changed about it. Picking it up with a look of disgust, she began to carry it around, in case it would become useful in the future. Looking around, she spotted a new note which she approached with mild interest. "Tenjin Public Relations: The Light and the Dark Sides of Heavenly Host Elementary's Principal Takamine Yanagahori.

Ground was broken for Tenjin's municipal "Heavenly Host" elementary school building in 1952. It quickly became a source of pride for the town, as no elementary school had stood within Tenjin's borders at all prior to its construction. Primary schoolers had previously been commuting to neighboring towns for class, so for them in particular, Heavenly Host was a godsend.

The coveted position of principal for this new learning institution was awarded to a man named Takamine Yanagahori. Yanagahori quickly became popular amongst the townsfolk for his charismatic personality, his work ethic and his firm but fair school policies. Registration and attendance soared well beyond the school's capacity, necessitating frequent desk and chair reorders and even general building expansion. Essentially, due to Yanagahori's unwavering dedication, Heavenly Host became a cornerstone of life within the humble town of Tenjin.

But all that began to change on the dawn of one fateful day, with an incident that would set the stage for Heavenly Host's rapid fall from grace..."

From that point on, the newspaper was torn, leaving the bottom part of the article nowhere to be found.

* * *

Abruptly the ground began to shake, sending Seiko flying forwards as the ground below rumbled restlessly. She shrieked in surprise, but was inaudible due to the high volume of the quake. "A-another one?" She stumbled, curling up so nothing would injure her. This was unbelievable! She already had to go through around three of those, and these were certainly enough. Slowly, the shaking stopped, taking it's time. Dusting her uniform, she stood up, feeling her legs wobble under her weight. "I wouldn't get anywhere in this state. I have to calm down. For Yuka. For Naomi."

She murmured, turning around to return to the Infirmary. "I should go to check on Naomi... After the earthquake, she might have gotten hurt." She thought out loud. Slowly, but boldly all the same, she began to head towards the room where she left the taller brunette. As she walked a few steps, she noticed a blue-tinted spirit. It was different. This one wore some sort of red garment.

Wasn't that the girl in the red dress?

"Hey! Wait up, please!" Seiko called after her, but to no vain, as the spirit raced away in speed that no human could match. Yet, she still attempted to catch her, sprinting in the direction she last saw her, taking quick corners here and there. Most of the way along was blocked, giving little to no possibilities for the girl to run away to. A voice belonging certainly to a little girl rang in her head, causing it to hurt almost instantly.

"Mother... I'll kill you..."

Whimpering, she tried to push the voice out of her head, ignoring it to the best of her ability. Reaching the end of the hallway, she stopped for a moment, catching her breath. Without much thought, she headed towards the west. There was a corpse laying underneath a destroyed classroom, body bloody. Whatever he did must have caused a very painful death, and it hurt just to look at him.

Frightened to touch the corpse, she instead took a note that lay nearby. Taken from the appearance of the handwriting, scribbled over the top of the paper, it was easy to assume that the author was on the verge of death while writing the message.

"I need water so badly... I'm hungry, sure, but I can deal with the hunger. It's the thirst I can't stand. The other guy I was with, Satoshi Matsubara..." Seiko felt tears rushing into her eyes again. "Mochida..." She wailed softly, but still continued on. "He tried drinking that filthy tap water from the sink in the bathroom. But he threw it all up almost immediately, and it burned his chest and his throat so badly that he wound up dying.

I've tried to think outside the box, even going so far as to drink my own spit...but needless to say, it didn't help matters one bit. My tongue's so swollen at this point that I can't even talk. Ironically, it's been pouring outside since we got here. If only I could've found a way to gather some of that rain water, Satoshi might still be alive. It's almost as if someone's playing a cruel joke on me - showing me more water than I've ever seen before, but putting it just outside my reach.

Somebody wrote that there's a whole other wing at this school, accessed through an outdoor walkway...but I never found it." The walkway? She knew where that was! Maybe that meant that something was in there. Something that could bring them closer to solving the mystery of the cursed school. If that was so, they should leave as soon as it was possible! "As a last resort, I'm going to try drinking my own blood. My name is Hidemasa Kojima. I'm an 11th-grader in class 2-4 at Amazaki West High. If anyone reading this ever makes it out of here alive...please, tell my family - tell my father what happened to me. I don't want to be a missing person for the rest of his life. I hate the idea of him always wondering where I went, or if I'm even still alive..." The rest of the letter was covered in thick layer of blood, making it impossible to read.

Walking away, she walked up to a sealed classroom, nothing changing about it. Charms still hang on the doors, causing them to appear like a decoration affixed to the wall. It was inaccessible. Heading the other way after checking the classroom, she instead wondered into another one. A new one, at that.

There was nothing on her side of the classroom, but something was visibly twinkling in the distance. Walking out, she tried to loop around it, entering the top of the classroom. The object traveled to the other side in response, leaving her standing in it's original spot with a puzzled look. "With it jumping like that I wouldn't be able to get it! I need help..." She observed to herself, shaking her head.

Giving up, she walked off to the end of the corridor, reaching a red ghostly figure, causing her to gulp in fear. Beside it lay a corpse. It smelled horribly, the terrible, too familiar smell of death and decay. "I'll kill you... I'll curse you... It hurts so much... I hate you...Sister..." Slipping away, fortunately unnoticed, she walked over to an object laying nearby. It was a mobile. To be exact, Satoshi's mobile. It was blue in color, similar to her very own. "That's Mochida's, I think."

As she lit up the screen, opening the flap, it turned out that Satoshi must have been writing a message to someone. Without meaning to, she read the text, closing her eyes and hugging the phone to her chest. "Oh, Mochida... I'm so sorry... I didn't mean to read it... Um, I'll better not show this to Naomi just yet." She decided, blinking tears from her eyes. She cried way too much already.

"Naomi... I was supposed to go to her!" Pushing the phone into her pocket, she hurriedly raced upstairs and into the direction of the Infirmary.


	14. Chapter 14

Laying the newspaper down, Ayumi walked over to the candle she had left before. "Hmm? What's my candle doing here? I'm sure I left it outside, in the hallway. Did someone move it?" She asked herself, rubbing her elbow uncomfortably. It was probably her imagination or something. She walked over to a desk, a note hanging next to it, clipped to the wall. "Monthly Goal: How to Remove a Tongue part 2. Draft."

The girl stuck out her tongue in disgust, but read on. "Cut the tongue with a pair of big scissors. It's so thick and warm! But how will you know whose tongue it is later, when you have a bunch more? Simple: Label it with a name tag! The tongue is very tender and squishy, so stick the safety pin in deep, to keep the label from slipping away. Eww...!" She mumbled, walking up towards the beds.

"...! There's a spirit here!" She half-shouted, half-squealed in terror, turning towards the entrance fleeing, in case she was chased. Luckily, as she stepped out, she could decide firmly that she was safe. She began to head north, since she already began on the way, however stopped eventually. "I can't go this way." She told herself, looking down at her feet. "I can't...bring myself...to see Suzumoto like that again... I feel like...I'll lose my mind..."

With that thought in mind, she started to head upstairs. As she walked on, a soft weeping sound came from somewhere close by. Looking around, her gaze affixed itself on the doll she was carrying. "...! Where...is that coming from...? Sounds muffled, like one of those toy Micca doll telephones...but it's definitely close..." She thought aloud, examining the toy in her hands. "It's the damned doll! It's making noises again!" She huffed, while the doll wept another couple times.

Realizing what had made the noises, she moved on, continuing her exploration. Being basically everywhere by now, she went back to class 2-A. As she entered the room, she saw the dead-fish-eyed girl again, crossing her arms on her chest. "Naho...Saenoki!" She called out to her, with no reply. "You're a liar! Liar, LIAR! Those child spirits didn't give a crap about the killer's stupid repentance! Give me back Suzumoto! Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhnnnnnngg..." She demanded, stomping her foot childishly.

Suzumoto wasn't coming back though, and she'll basically have to deal with it sooner or later.

Her thoughts of mourning and anger were torn by a voice ringing from behind. A familiar one, bringing her to a stage of relaxation, almost. Relief, certainly. "I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Your voice really travels." The voice chuckled. Ayumi turned around to face whoever approached her. "Ah! Kishinuma!" She cooed, wrapping her arms around his neck. "... Urk... You okay, Shinozaki?"

She moved away, feeling her cheeks warm up. "You're the one to ask! What on Earth happened to you?! There's blood everywhere!" She exclaimed, running her fingers through the hair on the back of his head, feeling the sticky crimson liquid layer her skin on her fingers. "Heh... Well, soon as you turned that corner before, I got struck in the noggin from behind... ...Glk!..." With worry, Ayumi knelt before him, inspecting for any further injuries.

"... But I'm fine, don't worry. Dunno exactly where, but I was locked in some gloomy little room..." He assured her, pulling her back to her feet with a small frown on his features. "The child spirits were there...along with some really big dude holding a hammer." He went on, describing everything he saw, with little attention to detail. "...How...did you get here, then?" His companion inquired. "Well, after a little while in that room, I lost consciousness again..." Yoshiki admitted.

"...and when I woke up, I was in the first floor hallway." He shrugged, while she tapped her foot in thought, struggling to figure everything out. "So...did somebody carry you there...? Either way, I'm just glad you're all right. I don't know how much more of this I can take... I don't want anybody else to die!" She cried, curling her hands into fists. "Yeah..."

The conversation was broken by Naho, who came a tiny bit closer while the two talked. "I... am not mistaken." She said, almost to herself, like she was ignoring the presence of the couple. Yoshiki looked up, head cocked. Goddammit, that ghost couldn't just speak normally, could she? Did she suspect that they could just like that know what she meant? "If each of those ghost children were to find peace... even if they had to be appeased one by one..."

The pauses caused the bleach blonde to grow pretty annoyed. She just couldn't get to the point, could she? "... then these closed spaces, given shape by their bound souls... should not be able to remain in existence." Ayumi slowly stammered over to his side, staring at Naho, her opinion not changing one bit.

"We let them hear the killer's regrets, though...and it did nothing to help us! What kind of person are we dealing with here, anyway?!" Yoshiki argued with the girl, shaking his head, causing the pain to grow worse, but he ignored it. "The man with the hammer, who attacked you... He was their murderer." Naho replied, voice vicious with disgust. "Y-You serious?!" He mused, surprise painting itself on his features. "It seems he's got a violent streak even in death, as well. He harms the living indiscriminately. So your first order of business...should be to quell his wanton behavior."

This time, Ayumi, for the first time, replied. "And how are we supposed to do that?" This time, she was slightly calmer, seeing that they were finally getting somewhere. "Based on my mentor's research, that antique doll you've got in your hands should be a good place to start. It belonged to him in life. He was given it by his mother, and reportedly, he relies on it to keep his mind leveled and his heart in balance. I'm certain he must be looking for it..." Naho explained.

Her mentor? Where was he, anyways? She kept talking about him, but never saw him after death.

It was pretty weird, in Ayumi's mind. "Hold on a second... Who's this "mentor" of yours?" Yoshiki asked in turn, confusion in his voice. Without a second warning, the ground started to rumble under them, while Naho's expression twisted, voice growing dangerously loud. "My personal affairs are none of your concern!" She screamed at them. Gasping, Yoshiki took a hold onto Ayumi, to protect her just in case. "What's happening?" He mumbled.

The earthquake continued for another few moments, before Naho straightened, her normal expression returning. "Sorry about that!" She said carelessly, clearing her throat. "You'll need to find the man's body... or his remains, at any rate. They should be in this school building somewhere. And if you find them, and return the doll to their side... everything'll be juuuust fine!" Her words were slurred, like the one's of a drunk individual. "Gggggggllllllllrrrrrrggggghhhhhh..."

"Ms...Saenoki...?" Ayumi whispered, getting only pants and wheezes in response. "You're friends death... is your own fault." Naho said, before disappearing. She melted with the air, leaving only a brief breeze that lasted no longer than a second. "What the hell was all of that about? Can we really believe a word she said?!" Ayumi shrugged to respond to her companion, looking up at the tall boy. "Maybe not...but it's as good a place to start as any. Earlier, as I was passing through the first floor, the doll started crying...like, weeping, loudly." She admitted. "Seriously...? Let me tell you, I sure didn't miss having that thing around..."

Yoshiki wore a frown on his face, looking down where the tip of the doll's cap aroused from Ayumi's pocket. That damn doll. It didn't do anything, so why would it work this time around? "Well, we might be able to use it like a tracking device. It could lead us right to the murderer's body! Either way... Let's just keep moving, okay?" She narrowed her eyes, looking down.

"Or... can you? How's your head? Wow, that's quite a bump you got!" She said with obvious worry, looking up at the bloody spot on his head again. "Guy was a lousy aim, but he still hit my head full force with the handle. If he'd been more accurate, I'd be a goner for sure. Damned child killer..." He shrugged it off, taking his hand off his head and using his handkerchief to wipe away the blood, which by now stopped flowing.

"You're lucky I just happen to have some cloth bandages with me. I'll see what I can do about dressing that wound..." Ayumi said to him, motioning for him to lean over so she could dress the wound. "Part of your prop closet, I take it? Guess I should be thankful for your horror obsession after all... Heh...heheheh..." He chuckled, grinning. What would he do without her? Well, he would probably give up in the very beginning...

As soon as she was done, they headed out of the classroom, and down to the first floor again. As they climbed down the final step, the doll began to weep again.

"From red door  
six steps horse  
thirteen paces rooster."

Yoshiki looked over at the doll. "What the hell does that mean?" He asked, shaking his head. "The custodian's office have red doors, that should be it!" Ayumi said, proud that she figure out at least a part of the clue. Walking over to the doors, she stopped, looking around. "Six steps horse." She repeated after the doll, and with a "Aha!" She took six steps south, and then thirteen more to the west, being followed by Yoshiki. They ended up before a wall, one of the floorboards ahead slightly raised.

Peering underneath, she could barely make out the outline of a bag through the darkness. "What's that?" She asked herself. Yoshiki shrugged, picking up the floorboard and pulled it up, shuffling the bag out. The bag was made out of hemp, stained all over with crispy blood, showing it was significantly old. On the bag was a tag attached to it. "Heavenly Host Elementary School, Class 3-5, Ryou Yoshizawa."

* * *

A brown-haired boy lay neatly on the Infirmary bed, eyes of matching color dropping slowly, leaving them half-open, staring up at the girl hovering around him. Her own eyes were crystal, vision blurred with tears that rhythmically rolled down her cheeks. "Satoshi... I'm so, so sorry... But I can't... I can't stop the bleeding." She said sorrowfully, moving his bangs out of his face for him, finding them sticky with sweat.

He breathed shallowly, looking slightly confused, gaze unfocused. "Naomi... It's alright. Everything's going white. It's actually pretty. Hey, if I die, will you be sad?" Satoshi asked, trying his best to focus over at the girl. "Of course I will! Don't you dare die on me!" Naomi shouted at him, desperate not to be left alone. "When I do die, I want you... I want you to find the way out this place... I know, Naomi, that you'll do it... With me or without me... Leave me here... I would be just a burden." He whispered, weakly rising his hand to touch her cheek, while she took his hand and placed it on her moist skin where he aimed, closing her eyes.

"If you die... I can't, Satoshi... I can't do it without you..." The girl sobbed, shaking her head. "Of course you will! You have... Shinohara... She'll take care of you." Satoshi assured her. "What are you saying? You're an idiot!" She sobbed at him, of course not meaning it. He was everything but an idiot... Oh, how will she miss him. "Heh. I think I'm the first person in class to see you cry so much." He chuckled, relaxing his arm into her grasp.

"What is wrong with you?!" She shouted at him, afraid that he was going to just give up at this point. Why wouldn't he, then again. This was a lost cause. His chest was still bleeding, and the dressing didn't help. "I'm ready for this, Naomi. I'm ready to go. Don't feel bad about this, okay? Just leave me... and go..." He said weakly. Naomi sobbed, not replying. "... Naomi?" Naomi pouted, fiddling with her thumbs. "All right already! Don't worry about me. Relax..."

She ordered him, sounding indeed strangely demanding. "I'm cold." He murmured, causing Naomi to helplessly sob once more, nodding slowly. "I know... I know... It'll be okay... Satoshi..." She wailed, while he smiled up at her. She was the thing that he would for sure want to see in his final moments. "Dammit... I just realized that... that I'll die... without ever kissing anyone." If it was possible, his cheeks would begin to burn. But they didn't. Instead, another chill run down his spine. "Naomi...?"

She blinked down at him in surprise. All that time, she thought that he had a partner before, that some other girl had been in a relationship with him and they did stuff as such. The fact they were not was a little shocking to her, for he had a lovely persona, helping her fall for him almost instantly. "Huh? S-Seriously...?" She asked him with disbelief.

Satoshi nodded, smiling warmly. "I just... I want to know what it feels like." He answered sheepishly, closing his eyes, before re-opening them once again. "D-Don't be stupid..." She said to him, flinching slightly. "Please. It'll just be between us. You don't have to count it as your first kiss..." He tried to assure her, finding himself thinking that was the point of her dismissal. "That's not the poin-!" She began to argue, but he moved her hand in his own, tightly gripping onto it.

"Naomi..." He whispered. Taking in a deep breath, she blinked down at him and leaned in without another thought, planting a sloppy kiss on his lips, for her own liking too quickly pulling away. "Ha... Never thought that would happen." He muttered matter of factly, his cheeks a little rosey, but not warm, like any other part of him. In turn, Naomi could feel the burning sensation on her skin, drowning in it. "Uhh...uh-huh..." She agreed with a simple murmur. "Your lips are a lot softer than I would at first assumed." He continued after a moment of silence.

"Same here." Naomi chuckled, cocking her head down at him. Suddenly, his expression dropped, and tears began filling his eyes for the first time in a while. "Satoshi? Are you... crying?" She asked him quietly. "Why? Why, Naomi? I was ready... I was ready to go... But now I don't want to go... I don't want to leave you."

"Satoshi...!" The girl cried, covering her face with her hands to hide her tears. "No... I don't want to die... I want to be with you, Naomi! I want to be with you... for ever..." He cried, taking a final squeeze of her hand. "Satoshi!" She cried, knowing that this would be the last time she would ever see him. "Goodbye, Naomi."

And just like that, Naomi at last woke up.


	15. Chapter 15

"What's inside, I wonder? Here, have a look." The bleached blonde stretched out his arm in which he held a bloodied hemp bag up towards the girl that stood at his side. "No way! I'm not touching that thing! YOU look!" She shouted at him, eyes widening, taking a clumsy step back. How could he even suggest such a thing! The item looked awful, and there was nothing good inside of it, that's for sure.

"Ulggh... I have a bad feeling about this..." The boy muttered, shaking his head, closing one eye and began to open the bag, taking his time, too. He equally shared doubts about it, and knew that no good would come out from this. After all, when was the last time a bloodied bag meant something good? "UWAAGH!" Yoshiki screamed, jumping back, at that point also dropping the bag.

Looking anxiously at him, Ayumi gulped. "Wh-Wh... What? What is it? What's in the bag?!" She asked in a wail, looking down at the item, feeling a shiver run down her spine. "See for yourself!" Ungrateful for the reply, she picked up the bag. She already hated the feeling of the crispy blood in her hands, although it was lightweight and whatever was inside had an odd shape. With a breath, she took a quick peek inside. Similarly, she dropped it, stumbling back. "Eek!"

The bag appeared to contain a severed human tongue.

As the bag hit the ground once more, the doll began to weep again, and Ayumi focused on it instead. "re turn it re turn it re turn it re turn it." The doll cried, making the girl choke. "This...name tag... It's...a boy's name... It must be...the ghost of the little boy..." She noted, hacking and chocking. "Shinozaki...!" He cried, looking down at the bag. "What do we do with it? Ulgh, it's so nasty..." He frowned.

"We give it back... to it's rightful owner..." Ayumi answered matter-of-factly, closing her eyes, which didn't help. Instead, the image kept flashing back, causing her to swallow down another scream. "Huhh? You out of your mind?!" He screamed in disbelief, but as he got no answer, he stood up, dusting off his uniform and picking the bag up, similarly swatting at it few times.

Standing blankly for a few moments, Ayumi blinked a little. "Last time, I saw the boy spirit up in the Infirmary. Do you think he would still be there?" She asked, snapping out of thought. "Dunno, but it's worth checking out." Yoshiki admitted, turning around and beginning to lead her up to the Infirmary. As they went inside, certainly, in the corner of the room, the blue-tinted boy sat, curled on the bed, staring at nothing with his hands wrapped around his knees which were brought up to his chin.

He was humming gently, barely audible, the tune breaking. looking at his companion, the teen began to head up to the spirit, closely followed by the girl. Stepping out before the ghost, Yoshiki froze in place. He couldn't bring himself to take out the bag, feeling the deadly gaze of the boy locked on him. _Oh crap! He's looking right at me! _He thought in distress.

"Oaaaaaaauuuuugghh..." The boy murmured, looking like he was about to pick himself up. "UwaaAAHH!" Yoshiki screamed, as the only thing he could currently do, unable to break the eye contact. Watching the pair, Ayumi stepped out in front her friend, but it didn't help to cover him, for she was just about a head shorter than himself. "Ryou Yoshizawa!" She called out to the boy, who focused on her, surprised for someone to know his name. All this years, nobody had found about it. Nobody used it anymore. This time... It sounded so fresh, so pleasurable. Someone knew who he was. He was someone. He finally was someone, not some nameless spirit murderer roaming the hallways.

Quite shocked that it worked, Ayumi undertook a bolder look, staring straight at the ghost. With his visible glee for someone to know of his name, he seemed to have forgotten the purpose of him being in the school. "That's right! I know your name!" She added, blindly stretching her hand out for Yoshiki to give her the bag, while he did so, looking familiarly surprised. So it did work, huh? Shinozaki sure had a spirit. Now, the only thing left was to see if the tongue would be accepted, by the one who once lost it.

* * *

The girl was panting pretty badly, squealing in shock. "...It was all...a dream...? What the hell kind of dream was that?!" She asked herself, shaking her head. "Mochida... I miss you so much..." She wept quietly, biting back a sob. This was madness, just pure madness. Drawing in another deep breath, she stood up and began to stumble out of the Infirmary, getting immediately scared of room from the earlier experience she had with it.

Seiko sprinted up the hall. She was so stupid! Naomi was hurt, and if something happened to her, it would be her fault... This was too much. Far too much for her to bear. Feeling her own neck beginning to burn, she slowed down, panting heavily. "Ow..." She murmured, blinking a few times as she began to simply hurriedly walk down towards the room. Instead of walking inside, she stopped after a few more steps, eyes locked on the figure ahead of her.

"Naomi...?" She mumbled, feeling relief flood over her as she rushed over, ignoring her earlier pain and wrapping her arms eagerly around her friend. "Don't leave me alone like that again, Seiko... Please..." She heard a murmur into her neck, and she nodded. "Of course I wouldn't. I'll always be right there, I promise! I just... I heard Yuka, and I went out to look out for her." She explained, burying her face in the other girl's hair, breathing in greedily her smell, enjoying the closeness while it lasted.

Naomi pulled away with a weak smile. "That makes sense... Did you find her?" She asked, rubbing her head, for she felt a slight pain around it, not to mention her neck. Frowning in her concern, Seiko tried to look away, shaking her head. "No. There's a wall where we saw her last." She explained. "We should find a way to travel through spaces... Then we might about just reach the other building!" She thought out loud, although doubtfully. "Yeah, that would ideal." Naomi agreed, titling her head. "Hey, wait up! I left you in the Infirmary, what are you doing out here?"

The girl flinched. "I got scared..." She admitted quietly. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have left you there! Ugh... Are you okay?" Seiko asked, closing her eyes to push away the building guilt. "We should keep our distance from there. I'm fine." She mumbled, nodding slowly. "Sounds like a plan!" The other girl agreed, beginning to head for the second floor, but stopped. "Hey, you seem spacey, is something wrong?"

Naomi avoided her friend's gaze, trudging after her, she shrugged. "I had a dream... about Satoshi..." She mumbled, voice sorrowful. "Oh... Really?" She muttered, joining Naomi's side to help her move through the school building. "He must have suffered..." The sentence made Seiko cringe and look away. "Yeah... Don't let it get to you, though... Please... Naomi." As the brunette began to sob, she nodded, covering her mouth to try and stop crying. "I saw something on the first floor, but I need your help in getting to it." Seiko changed the subject swiftly, taking the brunette under her arm and heading down to the classroom below.

She led them to classroom 5-A, somewhere downstairs, walking over to the top of the classroom, and stopping where the light has been beforehand. "See the light? It flickers around, depending on where you move... Could you wait here? I'll go chase it out from the bottom." Nodding in understand, Naomi positioned herself where she was ordered, waiting patiently for the light's arrival.

Seiko rushed down to the bottom part of the classroom, grinning proudly. "Yeah! And now grab it!" She cheered, and Naomi nodded from the other side, returning the grin. "Got it!" With a squeal of glee, they both exited the parts to meet in the outside hallway. "Nicely done! What is it?" She asked, looking over at the red key that Naomi held. "It's for the custodian's office." Naomi read the tag attached to it. "You remember where that is?" Seiko nodded, and as she did, the duo began to head to the office.

Using the key, they entered inside. It was a small room, with a cabinet standing before what looked like a tiny podium, with a calendar hanging nearby, over a couple of desks. Up on the podium, there was a tiny TV with some camera over the top of it. As soon as they entered, the room was swallowed by darkness. "Hey... Why did the lights go out?" Seiko yelled in surprise.

"What the...? What's going on? Why is it...so cold?" Naomi asked, rubbing her arms in a try to warm them up again. "Hey, can you find the light switch?" The short-haired girl nodded and walked about blindly, stretching her arms out to seek out for the wall. Eventually stumbling upon it, she caressed it carefully. Successfully hearing a click, the lights flicked back on, and she sighed in relief. "There you go."

Nodding gratefully, Seiko looked around again. "It really does smell in here... And it's not only mold, is it?" She heard the inquire from her side, and shook her head. "Probably not." She agreed, quite sadly, to be honest. She only wished it could be simply mold. "This is odd." Naomi noted to herself. "Hmm?"

"Oh, nothing."

This felt very much like she had a case of déjà vu. She certainly saw this room before. With a look of puzzlement, she walked over to the calendar. Every day until the 18th November, 1975 was crossed out with a large 'X'. Inside the cabinet next to it there was a notebook labeled 'Night Guard Logbook' and a few more crumpled pieces of paper. "Heave_ _Host E_menta_ _h_ol Confinement Tou_ - Now taking applications! -" Naomi read the strange text with a tiny struggle. What did that even mean?

There was a Video8 camcorder laying on top of the TV. It's cassette deck was empty. Its batteries also seem to have run out, however, as the LCD display isn't turning on. "What is something this recent doing in a place this old?" Seiko asked, poking at the camcorder. "Maybe it belonged to someone who was brought here, like us..." Naomi offered, and her friend agreed silently through a plain nod. "That makes sense. But there's no plugs or cassettes, and the battery's low... That wouldn't be much use at this stage."

As soon as she finished speaking, a note appeared nearby. "Hmm?" Picking it up, Seiko began to read through what was scribbled over the top, the font faint through it's aging. The title read; Strange But True: Stories of the Occult. "Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building - followup. By -Kou Kibiki.

"Let's talk a bit more about Yoshikazu Yanagahori, beloved son of Heavenly Host Elementary's Principal Takamine Yanagahori.

The man was a born instructor, pure and simple. He took up the mantle as soon as he could, and performed his duties with peerless panache. But then the illness struck, and little by little, his winning personality gave way to pure instinct. He was slowly losing all sense of identity. Although the cause of this illness was unknown, its effects were anything but. Simply put, the good teacher had begun reverting to a childlike state. He began carrying an antique doll with him at all times - a memento from a long-forgotten festival perhaps, given to him by his late mother. His behavior during class degraded quickly. More often than not, his lectures would cease before the period's end, and he'd begin wailing mournfully.

Finally, several months prior to the kidnapping and murder incident, Yoshikazu reached a point where he could no longer communicate his thoughts. Although he could still understand others, he became virtually incapable of forming words without intense focus. Given all the evidence mounted against him, Yoshikazu Yanagahori was arrested on multiple counts of kidnapping, murder and desecration of the dead. But due to his mental condition, he was never able to confess his involvement in these crimes, nor even properly discuss them with authorities." She read out, swallowing.

"Everything hinged on the testimony of the sole survivor: Sachiko Shinozaki, age 7. In search of the truth behind the less scientific afflictions this incident spurned, I of course chose to follow the trail of this mysterious little girl. Those who have seen the infamous newspaper photos accompanying this story may remember Sachiko best as the girl with the strikingly unusual red dress.

It's hard not to feel sympathy for someone so young forced to watch other children her age being tortured and killed, one by one. And certainly, if I were to find Ms. Shinozaki and secure an interview, there would be some real moral concerns about digging up such painful memories...but then again, she's been a full-grown and (hopefully) well-adjusted adult for over ten years at this point.

By now, she should be able to look back upon those horrible events with some objectivity, and give a more thorough account of what happened that day..." The girl went on.


	16. Chapter 16

Clearing her throat awkwardly, feeling the weight of the tongue being dumped onto her palm, she looked down at the boy, who now eagerly sat up on his knees, hands on his lap. "I feel bad for what happened to you... but I can't sympathize with what you're doing." She began, making the child frown, exactly like one would look whenever scolded. He was ashamed, quite honestly, but the feeling was suppressed with the strength of the curse.

"Hurting strangers because of your own despair... pulling them into a horrible place like this... and killing them! You killed our dear friend!" The boy looked up in confusion. He hadn't done anything to their friends just yet. He was... busy, with others. Maybe she meant Tokiko, or Yuki? Those were always bringing blame on him! Just because he was older, in Tokiko's case, or because he was a boy, and therefore a troublemaker according to Yuki. Damn them! What if he... he wouldn't get his tongue back now? Because of them! It would be all their fault!

Realizing her own mistake, she decided against correcting herself, feeling strangely in a dangerous position. She couldn't bear the gaze of the boy, knowing that she had mistaken him for the two girls who caused Suzumoto's death. In a moment like this, she haven't had time to think clearly, though. "I can never forgive you for that!" She admitted, voice growing softer. "But...this is yours. It's part of your body. So...I'm going to give it back to you." She whispered, handing over the hemp bag.

Ryou stared down at the bag in his small hands, twisting and poking at it. He smiled widely, hugging it to his chest, and cradling it like a child. "My humhh! My tongue! Thank you, Miss. Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He murmured, quickly squeezing her, jumping off the bed, and disappearing out of sight. Paralyzed through what just happened, Ayumi began to pant and wheeze, clutching her chest. Without a warning, the ground began to shake.

"Wha?! What's going on?!" Yoshiki asked, shouting out of sheer surprise. Not knowing herself, Ayumi squealed, toppling over.

The boy smiled, and waved, although unseen, getting unnaturally pale light around him, underlining his now visible features. He was once again in his clean clothes, his hair unruffled, but neatly arranged, eyes of matching color warming back to life. "Goodbye, Miss. Help the others, okay?" He whispered, unheard. With those single six words, he flashed and disappeared.

Sitting up, Ayumi looked around, leaning on the wall. That was one over with. Regaining her breath, she looked up at Yoshiki, waiting for him to say something. "I'm impressed, Shinozaki. You're far stronger than I thought. Totally fearless, in fact." He tried to compliment her, offering a smile. "I was scared out of my mind! My brain is still struggling to make sense of all this!" She corrected him, bringing her knees over to her chin, hiding her face in them.

"O-Okay... but look, the ghost is gone." He rubbed her shoulder lightly, sitting beside her, bringing her head up so she could get a view of the Infirmary room. Indeed, Ryou was gone, once and forever. "I guess... we really managed to appease him!" He continued, visibly happy with the fact. "Are... Are you all right? You... should probably dry your tears and blow your nose, at least..." He suggested, as lightly as possible.

Without much of a warning, she hugged him tightly, listening to his instructions and frantically wiping her tears away, blowing her nose on his school blazer, causing him to begin and wriggle away. "Ack! What the hell?! Not on my shirt!" Yoshiki shrieked, aiming to wipe away some of the substance with his handkerchief. "Didn't I tell you before that you shouldn't say things like that?!" She yelled at him in turn, acting like she had no clue why he would react in such a way.

"What are you, two?! ...Ulgh... That's really gross!" He scowled, although inwardly began to worry. She wasn't usually like this. What was wrong? If, anything was wrong, that is. He could only suspect there was. Picking himself up, he hopped off the bed, and invited Ayumi to do the same. "Come on. We better head out again." He told her, and began to head for the first floor once more.

In a lack of places to visit, he walked up to the entranceway. Through the severe earthquakes, some of the floors have collapsed, leaving spaces unable to be explored over. The antique doll began to weep over again, and Ayumi pulled her out of the cover of her pocket, staring down at it. "go to where the floor collapsed  
but then got better

one step rooster  
ten paces rat." It said in it's strange clues. "The west staircase! There was a hole there, but now, it's just a crack." The girl decided, pulling her companion after her. As they reached the spot, she looked down at the crack and stood before it. "One step west..." She whispered, taking the single step in the direction and turning round north. It was the only way, really, since there were walls both ahead and at the left-hand side. Walking up the steps, counting each one, she headed on.

Once again, one of the floorboards were raised, and underneath give a sign of some item shining underneath in the gloomy cover of darkness. Without hesitation, Yoshiki scrambled to his knees and began to pull out another hemp bag, already knowing well enough what he was going to find. As he did pull the item out, it turned out not exactly to be what he thought. "What...? A winder? What do we need that for?!" He asked, observing it carefully in between his fingers.

Shrugging, they both headed up to classroom 1-A, in which Ayumi found herself in a secret room, with a little lever up there, which needed a key or in this case, a winder to go on. It looked about more or less like it would fit perfectly, and so, Yoshiki began to work it's way in. Indeed, without trouble, it slipped in it's rightful spot, but nothing happened afterwards. "Oh, come on!"

* * *

Due to both being physically injured through the rope, Naomi and Seiko decided to rest. It might have been a silly idea, but they made sure they could easily escape if it was necessary. The newspaper article scared them, so for now, they left it aside, and decided to just sit back for a moment.

The short-haired girl continuously rubbed her neck, trying to relief the pain that snatched into, having Seiko sit at her side, head on her friend's shoulder, looking ahead. How long were they in the school by this point? A few hours? Probably not. Through the deep mist of dark clouds that brought the never-ending rain, it was impossible to see any signs of nor daylight, nor night.

No matter how hard she tried to even guess what time they were in there, it proved itself more and more difficult each and every time. Maybe they were there a few days? It sounded like it. More happened in the past while than she could comprehend with, and each second spend in this godforsaken place didn't make it any better.

Only the knowledge she was there with Naomi at her side could be counted as some sort of a relief, mental one at least. Her legs were aching, and her neck burning. It still had multiple wounds afflicted by the rough rope. The hairs were of a different texture than she was used to, and every time she recalled it, they came back to scratching her.

The pain back then was unbearable, and it still was. What would she do if she had died back there? Would Mochida live? Would her dearest Naomi end up insane, and attempt suicide herself? She already did, but the cause of it was obviously Satoshi. She always loved him, and still would.

Her promises of keeping her safe were empty, for she could not fulfill them properly. Or she doubted so. There were many obstacles on her way, and she tripped over almost every which one. Mochida would have taken better care of her, but he had to know that she was left now under Seiko's care.

Damn it, she had her siblings to take care of at home! She had a family! She had... she had her father to support. She was supposed to start a part-time job as a waitress in a nearby restaurant to bring a few coins back home. Then again, if she didn't come back, that was one mouth less to feed, right? It wasn't the most realistic thought, but certainly a realistic one.

"Seiko?" Snapping out of her wonders, Seiko focused up at the slightly taller girl she was leaning on, blinking curiously. "Yeah, Naomi? What's up?" She asked in a tone of exhaustion. "... We-We... We'll come back, right?" The brunette asked softly, afraid of the answer.

Contemplating whether or not to voice out her honest opinion, Seiko smiled, lifting herself up and kneeling before the girl. "Of course! And let me tell you this, it will be the most beautiful moment you can imagine. By now, the rainfall back home would have eased, leaving the air nice and clean. The halls, although empty, will be much better than the ones here... They are going to be our very own halls! The classrooms where we met others..."

Seiko began her story, grinning all the time. "You'll go outside and there will be a lot of puddles in which you could play around. The plants will be alive with a new glow, a new shade of green, with little drops of water sprinkling down from them. And as you reach home, your mother will scream in joy. She'll get your ankle treated, and all your other injuries...

Then she'll stay with you in your bedroom. She'll help you change and she'll get you ready for school the next day. She'll bring you food to bed, knowing that you must be exhausted. She'll hug you and kiss you all over because you deserve it. She'll appreciate every breath you take, every second she can stay with you. And then, you'll just fall asleep.

You'll fall asleep knowing that I'll be waiting in school for you. That your mother has taken care of you, and never let anyone lay a finger on you. That you're out of this place, and that you're safe. You're finally safe, and you'll see all of us tomorrow. You'll see greeting us at the front door in the very first second of school. You'll watch little Yuka cheerfully run up to her friends, glad to see them again, and into her classroom.

You'll see Morishige chatting away with Mayu, her laughing, and him awkwardly smiling. Then you'll see Kishinuma and Shinozaki. They'll be walking together like usually, her bumping him lightly and giving him a scolding look, while he laughs at her serious posture.

And then, you'll find me, waving and waiting. I'll be exactly the same, I'll be fine, I'll be happy to see you... I'll be safe, alongside you. I'll never leave you. Not in here, and not in there. I promise. I swear on my very own soul. Then we'll just go on with the day like no other. We'll be together again, and slowly, yet successfully, we'll forget all about Heavenly Host."

The conclusion sounded most certain in the tale, and yet, she believed it would be true. _And maybe, just maybe... Maybe I'll finally manage to get the courage... I love you Naomi. Why can't I say this into your face? Why?_


	17. Chapter 17

_Author's Note: _I just wanted to make this a little warning that this part of the chapter is just going to be a flashback of how Seiko and Naomi met, and the Corpse Party actual storyline will be focusing on Ayumi and Yoshiki, since they have the appeasing to do, etc. Mostly, what you'll see of Naomi and Seiko is going to be either flashbacks or like in the last chapter a little bit of fluff (:

Although still not budging, the lever did show signs of being able to be pushed just that one notch that divided it from being the full way down. Grunting with effort, Yoshiki managed to pull the lever down, feeling satisfied as soon as he knew he had reached his point. After that happened, they could sense a tiny rumble under their feet, causing Ayumi to squeal, but shake it off almost immediately, knowing soon enough that it was no new earthquake. "I think that was on the first floor, somewhere... Should we look?"

The bleach blond nodded slowly, although uncertainly and began to head down towards the steps, led by the Shinozaki, excitement visibly coming out through her. Every step from this point on was another one to bring them closer to being able to find their way out, to find their friends, and get out of here. Slowly, she walked into the dark corridor, the mystery of it causing chills to run down her spine.

Whatever the newly discovered place was, it looked... It looked like a changing room. "This school is huge!" Ayumi complained, although mostly to herself. "Wow, get a load of this place... It's got showers and everything." Yoshiki murmured in turn, taking a cautious look around to examine the large piece of space. Like the hallway, it was almost ultimately destroyed, and he doubted anything worked in here. The only thing it did, was it give a chance to take a peek outside, he supposed.

The rain seemed to be ringing close by.

"It hurts..." The blue-haired girl looked around, about to question the childish voice. "Make it stop..." Again, interrupted the last time, she opened her mouth, ears ringing. " Oh God, my head!" Another voice joined in, much louder than the other two. With a gently sob, feeling pain bursting through her head once again, she sunk onto her knees, feeling something warm and sticky pour out of her nose. Was it a nosebleed? Most likely, but she was too afraid to see for herself.

Turning around, Yoshiki gasped, staring at the crimson liquid that oozed from the girl's nose. "Shinozaki!" He called in shock, kneeling beside her and wrapping his arm around her for comfort. "Are you alright? Did you... feel something again?" He asked with a frown. At this rate, she was going to seriously get hurt at some point, and he couldn't just order the voices to stop. Sniffling, Ayumi nodded, her cheeks moisturized with tears that streamed out of her eyes.

"Uh-huh..." She agreed, wincing. _Another nosebleed... If it's just her nose, it's fine, but if a blood vessel burst in her brain or something... _This was by far not an optimistic thought, but what could he do? He couldn't just force himself into thinking she was fine. Pulling out a packet of tissues, he opened the packaging and pulled a couple out. "Here, Shinozaki... Stuff some tissues up your nose to stop the bleeding." He offered, smiling ever so slightly.

Sniffling once more, the girl nodded, accepting the tissues gladly. "Thanks... I have some of my own, but since you got yours out... Thank you." She mumbled, stuffing up her nose with them. "Yeah, go ahead." He rubbed her shoulder gently, pulling away before the situation might have gotten uncomfortable. While she tried to clean the blood off her uniform, he stared down at her, deep in thought.

Did the ghosts get to her? No. She was acting weird even before that. Perhaps she just... She just reached her limit. Yes, that should be it. She just should rest, and she'll be completely fine. Looking around, he spotted a ghostly figure walking towards the lockers, and followed. The locker itself was empty, and he looked back, it appeared to be a whole new room. He'll be back with Shinozaki in a moment, but it was a good thing to investigate first of all...

Walking up to the showers, he began to poke around them. He tried to turn them on, but none worked, so he walked up to a mirror in one of the corners. It appeared that his reflection was missing. Like none existed in the place. That was odd enough. Shrugging it off, he walked away, over to a bucket. It was crammed with underwear, bloodied and twisted like a dishrag. Disgusting, to say the least. It looked like the pieces of clothing were squeezed until the blood swam at the bottom of the bucket.

Trailing over back to the walker he saw the ghostly figure walk to before, he noticed that it there was a uniform pushed roughly inside of it. "Takuya Arai. Age: 18  
Lexern Senior High School, Class 3-2." The ID tag read. Looking around, he spotted a pair of doors, and exited through them, out into some fresh air at last. The rain was still pouring, soaking him thoroughly. There was a large outside pool, which he looked into. The color seemed... wrong. It was more green than the natural bluish clear color. Up the side, there hang a note, clipped to the fence. It was odd the writing wasn't washed away. "No running by the pool." Well, that was... something normal.

Back in Kisaragi, he went swimming a few times with the school. Every pool appeared to have a notice like that hanging somewhere, despite it being obvious. "A pool, huh? Can't even see the other side of it, through all this rain..." Looking up at the pool, he could feel another presence, and surely enough, Ayumi joined his side, shivering and straining. "Shinozaki, this is clearly not working." He muttered, making her look up with confusion. What could he mean? "Why don't I take the doll for a bit?" He offered.

It sounded like a reasonable idea. "You'll catch your death of cold out here. Go back inside. I can handle the search. You just wait for me in the locker room." He continued, before she could protest. "And what's going to happen if a ghost shows up again, hmm? You think you'll be able to handle it?!" She yelled at him crossly, folding her arms. She was more concerned than angry, however."

"Don't worry about me. If anything happens, I'll call you. And you can come to my rescue." He toothily grinned, winking in an almost cheeky way.

* * *

"Fine! I didn't want to play with you anyway!" A small girl shouted at the top of her lungs, raising a fist in the air to wave around madly. There were tears sprouting in the corners of her eyes, threatening to spill. "I hate you!" She screamed, dropping onto the pavement. She sat down at the curb, kicking her feet at the stones on the road. It was a quiet street, with cars rarely passing by, so there wasn't much of a chance for something to drive past. And if something did, she could just inch her feet away.

She didn't look to her right, knowing her fri- ex-friend was still there. She was such a liar! She promised! She promised to take care of it! The story was simple: Naomi only had one friend in the new-to-her neighborhood, and that only friend borrowed her favorite toy, on purpose destroying it in front of her eyes. The little girl now felt lonelier than ever, and being new, it was rough to find new friends. She was only eight, what was she supposed to do?

Her mother only walked up to random benches in the park, and as she turned around to look at her, she was already chatting away with some woman, who apparently sometimes had a daughter her age. They all thought of her as weird though. Accidentally, she had cut her hair. By herself. It didn't go that well, as anyone might have suspected. She was called weird, for her hair merely reached her shoulders, looking shorter than those belonging to a boy.

Still, she liked them. Running her fingers over her dress, she squeezed the material between her fingertips, looking down at her hands in defeat. Instead of doing anything... productive, she sat at the curb just outside her house, with the "corpse" of her doll nearby, examining closely the light blue creation she wore, tied with a bow under where the chest would be. It made her look like she tied an apron the wrong way, but it was nothing of that sort.

"Kyaa!" A shriek sounded above her, and before she knew it, it was followed by a loud thud. Bouncing to her feet, Naomi looked behind her, noting a girl with hair of completely different length to her's, reaching down to the waist. They were of only a shade darker brown, sprawling around the owner, who landed on the pavement. "Oh my God! I'm so sorry! Are you alright?" Unexpected, the foreigner began to laugh, almost hysterically, rolling onto her back, clutching to her stomach.

Her eyes were closed, but from what she could see, she had a natural catty smile, visible perfectly. "Hahahaha! Nah, I'm sorry! That was my fault. Wasn't looking where I was goin'." The girl, about her age, a tiny bit shorter giggled, slowly lifting herself up to a sitting position, moving over to the short wall that was build around Naomi's house, taking a perch there to dust off her clothes.

They were pretty. She wore a burning red dress with polka dots, although the dots were now dusty from the fall. Sitting herself up, the girl blinked brightly amber eyes up at her. "Who're you? I never saw you before, I don't think." This was surprising.

Someone wanted to talk to her, out of their very own will. She had nothing to do with it, and yet, this girl... She just walked up and began talking to her. Hesitantly, she joined her, finding the wall more comfortable than the curb indeed. "Nakashima Naomi." She murmured, rubbing her arm, not used to conversations that lasted longer than a few seconds. "Shinohara Seiko!" The other girl purred.

Seiko? That was a new. She never knew that sort of name before. "Yeah, I just kinda... I kinda just moved in not long ago, you see." Naomi muttered, swinging her legs. "Hmm... Well, do you have any friends?" Seiko asked, cocking her head. "Well, I met this girl... But it didn't work out." She said quietly, pointing to the headless doll laying on the ground. "Oh. Well, I'll be your friend then. And I'll be much, much better! I'll stay with you and protect you from whoever did that. You can play with me."

With the sweet offer, Naomi felt like crying. Someone actually cared? About her? "I would like that, yes..." She murmured, returning the smile that Seiko wore. "Now, we need to get to know each other better. What's up with your hair? It looks nice!" Seiko reached out to touch them, and with surprise, Naomi let her pet the top of her head, ticking her down the neck. "Um... A child with scissors... Not the best mix." She answered jokingly, chuckling.

Nodding, Seiko looked a wee bit sad. "I wish I could wear my hair like that." She muttered, but Naomi jerked her head up quickly, shaking it. "No! Please don't! I love your hair! They're so lovely and long... And look, they are almost the same color!" She quickly tried to pick her spirits up, making it work rather quickly. "Oh goodie!" The other girl cheered and hopped off the wall, beckoning for her newly made friend to join her. "Come on, we can go up to the park and play a bit, how about that? We can find a little bush or something to bury her under." She added, motioning to the doll. With a nod, Naomi joined her.

"Shinohara?"

"Yes, Nakashima?"

"Can I call you Seiko?"

"'Course! Anything else?"

"We'll be friends, right? Like forever?"

"Mmhmm! 'Till death tears us 'part!"


	18. Chapter 18

The brunette girl sprawled out in the grass, hugging into the greenery with what sounded similar to a cat purr. She watched as the clouds slowly rolled by, turning around onto her belly to look over at her friend that sat not too far away, cocking her head. "Naomiiiiiii!" She wailed softly, lifting herself up reluctantly and settling on the red and white picnic blanket.

She had prepared a little surprise for her siblings, letting them play around by the lake in the park, while she and Naomi could enjoy a small picnic. Stretching, she looked out. "Yuu! Watch out! Don't fall in!" Seiko yelled out, causing a few more neatly dressed women to glance in their direction, obviously surprised to find somebody behaving so rudely in a public place. Shouting, really? What kind of a babysitter was she?

Little did they know she was actually their elder sister, and hadn't had a clue of what a "correct" behavior example would look like. Surely, in school, as a child, people taught her not to poke around her nose, or sit with your elbows on the table when taking a meal, but she didn't had her finger buried inside one of her nostrils, and hadn't had a table with her. What could it be, then? Blushing slightly, Naomi glanced towards the women apologetically.

"Can you... pipe it down, please? You're making people look!" Naomi whispered with a little distress. Shrugging, Seiko reached hungrily into the basket, taking out another sandwich to eat up. "Should we do something?" She asked, taking another bite of the plain meal she held, progressing for another one. "Like what?" Being left dumbfounded at the inquire, she looked around, opening her mouth to propose some new idea.

There was no time, however.

"Hey! Mochida! Wanna join us?!" Naomi shouted excitedly, waving at their classmate, who waved back and nodded. Yuka, hiding behind him, peeked out, taking cover straight after. "Here Yuka, buy yourself the ice cream I promised, and then you can just join us again, okay? Why don't you play with Shinohara's brother, hmm?" The smaller girl accepted the coins, and gladly nodded. "Mmhmm!" She giggled, turning back in the queue.

Walking up, Satoshi set himself next to Naomi, making Seiko busy herself with the sandwich and pretending to suddenly get overprotective of her siblings, watching them splash around. Mochida was always interfering with her time with Naomi, and she was slightly annoyed by it, but for Naomi's sake, she would withstand it.

Naomi was evidently blushing slightly, smiling widely. "Hey, Mochida!" She greeted him, poking Seiko to follow her. Obediently, she let go of her sandwich and smiled at her classmate, waving, before returning to her own little world. Within an exchange of a few more words, Yuka came back, plopping down between Satoshi and Naomi, leaning on her brother and giving him the little change left, licking a pink-colored ice cream of strawberry flavor.

Deciding that it was best to get on good terms with the girl, Naomi began to chat away with the Mochida couple, while Seiko only stared. This was one of the multiple times she was to be hurt by her love's ignorance to her feeling, and each and every time it hurt just the same.

It was agonizing.

* * *

"..."

Sighing, eventually, the teen agreed, nodding. "Okay. Just don't do anything stupid." She pleaded, walking off back in the direction of the locker room, stopping for a moment. "Thankyou." She mumbled. "You say somethin'?" He asked, but go no response, instead only watched her disappear in the darkness as she entered the room.

Determined to take some weight off her shoulders, Yoshiki began to investigate the area himself. Circling the pool, he walked up to some stairwell, standing before the pool for a moment to look inside. "What's up with the murky water? There's no way to tell what's down there..." He thought out loud. "All I know is, I wouldn't be caught dead in this pool!" He laughed, pausing. Then again, he couldn't swim, so... Despite the classes he took, he always showed some sort of disinterest during instructions and just couldn't manage to do it like he should have.

Looking to his right, he could spot a note, glued with water to the ground. It lazily wavered in the breeze, but never could successfully escape. There were pits at either side, so he couldn't reach it. Another note hang nearby. "CAUTION! Make sure all students vacated the pool before draining." Downstairs, there was a doorway that read 'Pump Room', but they were closed.

Walking back to his original spot, he noticed something shining faintly between a crack on the ground. Leaning in to investigate it, it turned out to be a key, and without much effort he pulled it out. "Pump Room, huh?" He smiled at his new acquirement, shaking his head as a voice rang through it. "I ' . . ." It said, and instinctively, he turned around. Spotting a ripple in the water, almost like someone entered the pool but... but...

He was the only one with Shinozaki! "Was that...? No, there's no way..." He shook his head in disbelief, scratching his head. "Come on, give me a break here!" He screamed angrily, stalking to the top of the pool. "What the... Looks like something fell in! But Shinozaki's in the locker room... Isn't she?" He thought hopefully, running towards the locker room. The note changed, now reading: 'Water. Water everywhere, but not a drop to drink...'

Entering the room, he looked around. Empty. "Shinozaki?! Dammit, she's not here. I guess that really was her, then... What the hell is she thinking?!" Yoshiki growled, jogging outside and stopping just at the edge of the pool. "What is wrong with me? What am I doing? I should have never taken my eyes off her!" He sighed loudly. "This is all my fault! Goddammit!"

Searching for a ladder or something, he sprinted over to the nearest one. He couldn't dive in, afraid of drowning himself. "Hey! Shinozaki! Shinozaki?!" He began to dive around where he thought he had saw the ripples, two times with no positive outcome. Third time proved itself successful as he dove, managing to find something sinking, brushing against him. Blinded by the murky waters, he just grabbed whatever it was and began to swim out, loosing his breath.

He resurfaced and sucked in a deep breath, moving clumsily back towards the water. Taking her bridal style in his arms, he began to head more calmly into the locker room again. Upon arrival, he laid her down, holding her head up with the help of his arms. "Shinozaki! Shinozaki!" At least she had a pulse, although it was faint. Using the little skill he had in first aid, he began to get down to helping her, and eventually, getting to the point where the girl began hacking and sputtering water. "God, don't worry me like that!"

Without a reply, he leaned out, letting Ayumi to sit up for herself. He moved away, sitting on his knees, grey gaze focused on her all the time. "You back with me?" He asked quietly. "..." Shrugging, he titled his head. "So tell me, why the hell did you jump into the pool?!"

Through her pants, she looked up, confused. "You called me out there, didn't you?!" She snapped in return, angry that he could even remember causing all this. Or trying to dodge the fault. "I... what?!" Looking equally puzzled, she blinked a few times. "I heard your voice, so I ran outside...and after that...I don't remember much else... The next thing I knew, my vision was all this sickening green color, and my mouth was full of water." She admitted.

"Goddammit. Was this the work of those ghosts again? Can't believe they can trick us so easily!" Sighing, Yoshiki leaned back, looking at the ceiling in thought. "There's got to be something in that pool..." He thought to himself, setting his hands on his lap. "Ewlk... Ehte's somehink...tuck in my toof... Oh, God, it's like, algae or something!" She shouted, scratching the sea-plant out with a look of disgust, shaking her hand to make it drop again.

Smiling sympathetically, he walked up to the showers. "Maybe they still work..." He said, hoping so, for they could then proceed to clean themselves up. Checking each faucet in turn, they stopped by the fifth and final one. "... Nothing..." Yoshiki observed, shaking his head in disappointment. "I can't get rid of this horrible taste...and I smell absolutely putrid! I hate this!" She screamed, running to the corner, where she dropped to her knees.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" She cried, followed by a series of sobs. "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" She whined, rubbing her cheeks to wash away her tears. She was plentifully wet already. "Shinozaki? Why don't we go out into the rain and wash ourselves off a little? "Though I don't know how much help rainwater will be for getting that taste out of your mouth..." He admitted, taking her hand to help her back to her feet, heading outside again.

How could they dry their clothes off, though? "Come on!" He urged her, smiling softly to lift her spirits up. Standing a while in the rain, Yoshiki turned around to glance at Ayumi. "Feeling any better?" He asked her, concern lining his voice. "Yeah. Surprisingly, I was able to rinse out my mouth pretty thoroughly." Yoshiki grinned, looking down at his feet. "You did? That's good! So, Shinozaki, while I was out here... I came across a room, in the back that I'd kind of want to check out..." He began, and she cut him short.

"I'll come with you." She stated firmly, and he nodded. "That's probably for the best... All right, let's do it." Circling the pool, they went up to the pump room, and Yoshiki used the key he had found earlier. The key snapped as quickly as it turned, but fortunately, fulfilled it's mission. It was pretty dark, but he could easily make out the shape of some sort of valve wheel, which he walked up to. It was labeled 'Drainage'.

Turning the wheel, he looked at the valve. Nothing much changed, or so he thought. Heading back out of the pump room, with nothing more to do inside, he walked outside, grinning in satisfaction. So it did work! That was a good sign, right? The pool was now completely drained of it's content, a few bodies easy to make out against the algae-covered ground. Climbing down carefully off the closest ladder, Yoshiki began to poke around the corpses.

One was of a significantly tiny individual, it's skin bloated into a patchwork of pustules. Walking away from the young being, they moved to an evidently female student, the boy rotting and decayed. Nearby was another female corpse, a set of bones to show what would happen when body would be exposed to contaminated water for too long, leaving it a complete mess.

Another female. That's all they could really tell, however. Noticing that there was a ladder heading directly onto the pit-surrounded area that he had found a note on, he began to climb out again, and picked it up.

"I removed the wheel from the water pump, and threw it into the pool. Hopefully, that'll keep anyone from finding the little "treasure" I left in the spigot. That little bitch killed my friends. She can spend eternity without a tongue, for all I care!" Yoshiki read, taking a slight emphasis on the swear word there was, causing Ayumi to groan loudly.

Back in the pool, he noticed one of the draining gates were slightly open, and something was most definitely inside. Without hesitation, the boy dropped to his knees and began fishing around. He pulled out a rusted item of circular shape. "What IS this thing?" He asked, turning it in his hands. "Some kind of... handle?"


	19. Chapter 19

Blinking, Ayumi took the valve wheel from Yoshiki and determinedly headed back towards the pump room. It had to be used somewhere there, overall! Indeed, as she searched around, a crude label stuck with a single piece of tape read 'Water Pump'. Directly below it, there was an empty slot for a handle or lever. Taking the valve back, he began to push it in, grunting. "... Urgh! That's as far as it's gonna go. Too rusted to go anymore."

"That'll have to do." The girl shrugged, and began to walk out again, clearly excited to know what might be found. Walking down to length of the pool, she stopped by where the faucet would be. Something must have dropped out of it. A small hemp bag covered thoroughly with blood, and without a hard time guessing, Yoshiki picked it up and shifted it around to read the ID tag.

"Havenly Host Elementary School, Class 1-6, Tokiko Tsuji. Ullgh..." Just like before, the bag contained a severed human tongue. "That's a girl's name..." Ayumi ignored him, blinking at the bag. Collecting the bag, the couple began to head inside again. Better to give it back as early as it was possible. The note once again changed, the writing now thickly red. "Where are you taking that?! Give it back!"

Completely ignoring the message, they simply walked ahead, and began to head inside the school building again. Emerging in the lightly purple hallways once again, two blue-tinted ghosts appeared. Both female. "...!" Yoshiki stared between the two, beginning to freak out. "Which one do we give it to?!" She screamed, seeing the two began to approach closer.

Without much thought, Yoshiki grabbed the bag and knelt before the smaller one, with half the head missing. He would much rather get rid of her, if that wouldn't sound too rude. She just made him nauseous. The tiny girl gurgled continuously, unable to produce many other sounds. "Uwaaagh! She's...got no head above her chin!" He coughed, while the ghost just gurgled on.

Ayumi was shrieking at him, he knew, but he put no attention. Either he was right, or not. Tough luck. Staggering closer, the little girl seemed to look at the teen boy. "Tokiko Tsuji!" He began, and successfully brought her attention. "This is yours, isn't it? ...We're giving it back!" He cleared his throat, outstretching his arm in which he held the bloodied bag.

Slowly, but steadily, she grew more visible, this time with her head still present. She had to be no older than around six, eventually seven. "Thank you sir! Thank you!" She cheered softly, grinning as she wrapped her tiny arms tightly around his neck. "Thank you!" She whispered one last time into his ear. In the short distance, she could spot Ryou. He was kneeling, his arms outstretched invitingly. "Tokiko! Come on!" He called to her, grinning.

Leaving Yoshiki behind, she raced over and hugged the older boy happily, letting him take her hand and walk away, with each step fading further until they completely disappeared. "Wh-What happened?" Yoshiki asked, blinking at the two. Ayumi was about to scold him for such a stupid decision, but couldn't.

"The other ghost is headed this way. We have to run!" Seeing that the remaining, final ghost left to appease was in fact followed, Yoshiki scrambled to his feet and began to sprint the other direction, making sure to pull Ayumi with him. She was shorter, with shorter legs, which meant she could have easily fallen back, and that could mean death.

Reaching the end of the hall, with no choice, the couple slowed down and began to head to the west, firstly making sure they were no longer followed. "Hey, look!" Yoshiki poked the girl next to him, pointing to a ghost girl with bright red clothing that blinked at them, moving on to a stairwell. Without questioning, they followed. As they went down the first set of steps, the doll began weeping once more.

The bleach blond stared at it, angered. "Here we go again! Where the hell's it gonna take us this time?!" He shrieked at it. Almost twice now, they could have died due to the doll's instructions, and that was only moments ago. With final two weeps, the doll began speaking in a childish voice. "where your friend was splattered the floorboards beneath the wall right under her globby entrails where the floor dips and the blood pools drip drop drip drop smelly smelly icky icky..."

The blue-haired girl stared, covering her mouth. No, no, no! "An !" The doll began to creepily laugh, proceeding to turn hysterical. "Nooooo..." Ayumi shouted, throwing it with all her strength onto the floor again and dropping to her knees. "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" She repeated, louder this time. "You getting a good laugh of this you son of a bitch?!" Yoshiki yelled at the doll, taking all he could not to begin kicking and abusing it.

Shaking his head, he closed his eyes. "God, if that's where it is... I'm not sure... we can EVER bring ourselves to get it..." Surely, the last two times, it wasn't that bad. In fact, in the second, he almost didn't mind any longer, but digging under Mayu's corpse? No way! If he could, he would never walk up there again. Ever. "Is someone there?" A male voice asked curiously, followed by a few curt steps.

Ready to protect his crying friend and crush, Yoshiki step forth, smiling in relief. "Morishige! You're alive!" He called out, pretty pleased. So there was still a chance for everyone else. Nobody but Mayu has died so far, if you ask for what he saw. Even that little girl, Mochida's sister might have survived, but he doubted so. She looked far too spoiled and delicate.

Although his tone didn't reach his facial expression, Morishige let out some sort of a gleeful sigh. "Ahh, Kishinuma. And our class rep! I'm very glad to see you both safe and sound." He said to the two, walking the rest of the steps to join them. Without a proper reply, the girl moaned and continued to sob. "Hmm? What happened?" He asked, not too sympathetically for his own sake. "It's...a long story. So where have you been?" Yoshiki replied instead.

Taking a pause before replying, Morishige blinked at the class rep a final time, before glancing back at the boy she held a companion. "I was in the second wing until not long ago, but I suddenly lost consciousness... and when I woke up here, it felt as if the air had somehow changed. Oh, yes, and I did briefly cross paths with Mochida's sister and Nakashima, with Shinohara." He continued the not-really-moving story, in his mind. No ghost encounters no nothing. It indeed was a boring place. "Y-You did?! So they're okay too?!" Yoshiki questioned further, smiling widely.

Nodding slowly, he cocked his head. "They are. Though when I next ran into Mochida's sister, it seemed they had parted ways..." He noted, looking at Ayumi, who picked herself up with wobbly legs, staring at his hand. "Uh, Morishige? What... is that... in your hand?"

* * *

This might be a weird thing to do, and frowned upon by many. Some may refer it to stalking, but it was nothing like that. Seiko was a being true and pure, she wouldn't "stalk" on anyone. Yet, there she was with a light blue-colored notebook on her lap, looking out of her window in thought. She had to think about what to write next. She already had a lot of notes filling the diary, but she had to go on.

The very first page was one meant only for the title, in large bubble writing saying 'Naomi' with a decorative 'Nakashima' right below it. Around the name was a little bubble, with hearts pierced with arrows and whatnot all around it, shaded with light pastel colors, involving mainly pink. "Hmm..." After all those years, her observations turned out to be finishing up.

At the point, it was easy for her to guess Naomi's emotions just by the way she walked or moved, or how she talked, or even just looked. Not even by the expression, but the eyes itself. At the time, she was writing the multiple ways that perhaps she could win her over, take her for herself and not have to share with Mochida or anyone else. None did she have the actual courage to do.

So many thought of her as outgoing, unafraid to say anything and everything, and yet, if anyone ever learned of her feelings for her best friend, they would understand that her persona only went so far. She huffed, and began to reform her masterpiece. Something would have to happen to trigger the want to tell her something like what she wrote, and with Mochida in the way, she wasn't going to get Naomi any time soon.

He was always there.

Always ruining every occasion, every chance she was pulled into.

He was always there to expose her to more pain.

"SEIKO!" A shout from below rang, causing the girl to quickly close her book and open the window to look down at whoever was speaking. She knew very well who it was, but some sort of eye contact seemed like a privilege. "Oh, hey Naomi! What's up?!" She shouted back, waving madly, making her friend gasp in fear she might fly out the window at the sudden movement.

Grinning, the short-haired brunette clasped her hands together. "Wanna go out to the park again?! Mochida asked me if I wanted to come, and told me I could invite you too!" Mochida. Only Mochida. Nevertheless, she wouldn't miss a chance to spend time with Naomi. "Yup yup! Sure, goin' down right now!" She shouted back, closing her window and retreating into her bedroom. Fixing her hair hurriedly, she hid her notebook and raced outside. The kid's were still at school, and they had a day off, so she could easily accompany them for a while.

Racing down, her gaze traveled down the road a little. "Oh, hey Mochida!" She said with little enthusiasm, giving a hug for Naomi in greeting instead. "This is going to be bad..." She thought out loud in an inaudible mutter.


	20. Chapter 20

The blonde moved a tiny bit closer, studying the item. "Ah...!" He screamed, eyes widening. Morishige looked to be carrying a bloodied pouch in his hand, grasped tightly at the tip. "Hmm? Oh, this? I, uh, found it under the floorboards in the hallway." He explained with slight confusion. "Just up the stairs." He shrugged softly, head cocking questioningly. The duo remained silent, causing a little suspicion in the other teen.

Holding up his hand in offer, he tried his best to smile, although failed. "Is it some kind of charm? Do you want it?" He asked, trying to be helpful. He was more interested in finding Mayu, and charms would just get into the way. "please, do take it. I'm merely searching for a certain someone, so I have no need for charms at the present moment." He said, taking Ayumi's smaller hand in his own and laying the bag in it, wrapping her fingers around it, turning to leave.

Just like the other two, the pouch had a name tag, despite there being only one ghost left to appease. It just had to be there, Ayumi supposed. She looked down at her hand, and brought the bag closer to her chest, examining it closely. 'Heavenly Host Elementary School, Class 5-2, Yuki Kanno.' The tag itself read, although the writing was withered with age. Without another word, Morishige headed down the stairs again, pausing.

"Well, I should be going now. Is something wrong, class rep? You look like you've seen a ghost..." He asked with fake concern, attempting to hide the fact he could not truly care less for anyone but Mayu herself. He didn't even know that she had went through and seen far too much not to look any less than what he described.

Getting no reply, he began to step back again. "Right, I've been told by Nakashima and Shinohara earlier that we should try and meet in class 1-A." He concluded the short meeting, disappearing within the darkness. "O-Okay..." Yoshiki mumbled after him, turning to Ayumi. "I-I'm guessing..." Kneeling down, he picked up the doll that earlier was discarded onto the floor. "... it wasn't from... you know... Suzumoto's spot..."

Ayumi still didn't reply, staring at the doll viciously. "Maybe it shifted a few feet...and he got it from there. I mean, if he didn't, then..." Yoshiki swallowed, unable to finish the sentence. Finally, the girl took over the speaking role. "That really freaked me out..."

The words made her companion look up with a little bit of a questioning gaze. "Did you see his hands? They were covered in blood." For proof, she held up her own hand he had touched, leaving bloody fingerprints over her skin. Looking down, the boy nodded in understand, but kept silent. "We saw Kanno earlier, didn't we? When we returned Tsuji's tongue."

A simple nod in reply, they headed back to the same corridor they had came from. Certainly, the eyeless girl was still treading the hallway. As they neared, unlike the other one, it began to speak. Well, however she could speak without an actual tongue. Her one eye was focused on the hemp bag. "Gihh it back... GIHH IT BACK!" She demanded, voice booming. Unusual for a child her age. It was clear that if they didn't take action, she will end them.

But she was missing an eye! Will a tongue be enough to do? Looking at the bag, Yuki fell down to her knees, curling into a little ball and beginning to cry, rocking back and forth. "Yuki... Kanno?" Like her friends beforehand, Yuki gasped at the mention of her name, tear-stained eye looking up. "This is for you. It...is yours, isn't it?" Nodding, she picked herself up shakily, reaching out for the bag.

Successfully taking a grip on it, she pulled it open, smiling widely. "... Hanhh you... Thank you very much!" She said gleefully, following the routine of the other ghosts and flashing back to life, both optics in place. "Thank you..." She repeated, turning around to see Ryou and Tokiko holding out their hand for her to hold, standing one at each side. Running over, she took both of the youngster's hands and began to head away down the hall, fainting away.

"We did it... We did it, Shinozaki! All three of them!" Yoshiki cheered, fistpumping with a grin for a few seconds, turning round to face her. "All that's left is the girl in the red dr-"

Ayumi stared at him in horror. "NO! NO MORE! Every time I talk to these ghosts, I feel like I'm getting closer to death myself! Do you have any idea what that's like?! I keep picturing how I'll look when I'm dead...and I'm not even trying! It just pops into my head all on its own! And it's such a horrible image! I want to go home... I just want to go home! Back to my mom, to my sister... Back to Mochida..." She trailed off with a sob, and for a moment, Yoshiki felt like breaking down herself. She had him, why would she still be so persistent on finding Mochida? He was probably fine. "Shinozaki..." He began.

His voice was breaking slightly. Fighting it back, he continued on. "Alright. Next one is mine, then, okay? So just try to pull yourself toge- Whaa?!" He was knocked over by a pretty powerful earthquake, sudden pain stabbing his back at the touch. "Goddammit, not again! This one's big, too!" He yelled, opening his arms for Ayumi, who huddled close to him for while the earthquake lasted, himself using his body like a live shield to protect her.

And just like that, everything went black. "Oof... Was I... knocked out...? ...Where...am I...?" Yoshiki groaned, his vision unclear with many black dots sprawling in it. Wherever he was, it looked significantly similar in some way or another.

* * *

Whenever they arrived, Seiko had promised to keep Naomi safe, not counting any sort of cost for the term. She just wanted her long lasting love to get out of the godforsaken place safely, to be able and return home to her loving mother. Find comfort in her embrace, and finally get a piece of rest. Was that too much to ask for, truly? Maybe they were right. Maybe these people that entered the school before them were correct.

There was no escape, and no contact with heaven. There was no mercy. There was no sympathy, empathy, nothing. No feeling in regards for other forms of life, which was more sad that angering. Poor souls couldn't have access to their own paradise, disregarded to do different bloody work. And she was thrust into here. Her poor, little Naomi. Of course, she was older, more mature and such, but yet... She couldn't help filling so.

Now that they came to a rest, it was easier to remember. Remember the day they met, and what they had done together. There was a lot of pictures of Mochida in it, but she didn't care now. Why? Shouldn't she be struck more? This was all her fault. She caused her love eternal pain, and was useless if supposed to help. There was no way whatsoever to assist her now.

Death of a loved one was a traumatizing thing, and seeing they were so young. They had so much to live for, and so much to yet experience. Love, heartbreak... They were supposed to grow up, get a proper job and eventually get married and have a family. Help and watch them do the same, and grow old together. Now, through the terrorizing magic of Heavenly Host, nothing like that was possible. Chances were, they were the two lone survivors by now, and they were still yet to discover that. Or perhaps... Perhaps they were safe?

Someone in there, someone in this place, could be having their eye on them, making sure nothing bad happened to them. Ensuring they returned home, hand in hand. Or maybe it was sheer luck, and the ghosts were enjoying their struggle. "Naomi... We'll both leave together, right? I wouldn't leave you, and you'll not leave me, right? Right?" The brunette finally asked quietly.

"Mm, no. Of course not," Naomi replied after a moment of silence, smiling down at the girl beside her, trailing to look at her feet. "We'll make it out together. And we'll walk home together, too, okay? I... I-I don't think I would be able to walk alone."

"Right."

"Promise?"

"Cross my heart in a hope to die."

"Don't say that Seiko! Not here! Don't you know where we are?! They'll take you seriously, goddammit!"

Being scolded, Seiko began to laugh loudly, nodding. "Hah. Right. I wouldn't do that again. BUT YA HEAR ME?! I'M GOING HOME TOGETHER WITH THAT LADY OVER HERE, NAOMI NAKASHIMA, AND NONE OF YOU ARE GOING TO STOP ME!" She cooed out in a scream, wiggling her hands in the air.

_Author's Note: _Apologies for late upload, I was busy this week. This will be the end of the flashbacks and NaomixSeiko fluff. The next chapter will be with only the appearance of Yoshiki and Ayumi, unfortunately, so I can quickly get ahead with the plot. Whenever that's done, they shall return to reading the newspaper found a few chapters back (^:


	21. Chapter 21

Lifting himself up on shaky legs. The boy looked around, still dazed from the fall he took. It was still pretty difficult to tell what happened, and although he tried, it proved itself to be ahead of him. With another glance, he spotted Shinozaki laying not far off, and rushed to her side. Unlike Heavenly Host, this school lacked the multiple devastating places around each space, reminding him of their own classroom. "...?! Is this...our classroom...?" He thought aloud in glee.

Kneeling beside the girl, he shook her gently to attract her attention. "Hey! Shinozaki! Wake up! Shinozaki! Come on, wake up already!" He urged, taking a quick look around yet again to confirm his suspicions. Drawn back to the girl as she moaned, sitting up with a few hacks and coughs, panting slightly. "K-Kishi...numa...? ... Huh? What?!" She asked quietly, feeling dizzy.

Grinning above her was the figure of Yoshiki, concern and yet happiness clear in the grey depths of his eyes. "Take a look around you! I can hardly believe it myself...but here we are!" He cheered. "No way..." Refusing to believe, she lifted herself up to take a look for herself. Walking to a nearby desk, she ran her fingers over the surface, gasping. "We're... back? For real? Is this... really our school?!" She asked, not bothering to look over her shoulder. "It's really real!"

Walking about, he began to seek out for his desk, blinking down at it. It had his initials written sloppily on the top, flashing into attention easily after he continuously ran a black marker over it in boredom. "Heh. Here's my desk!" He explained, never feeling such happiness to see his "artwork" in his life so far. "Mine too! It's right here! I can't believe it!" Ayumi cheered, pointing to the desk she was standing by.

Unlike Yoshiki's it was almost spotless. In fact, it was cleaner than most desks in the classroom. She took extra care of it, despite it only being a simple ornament.

"It's true..." The teen muttered, pulling himself to sit up on the tabletop with a grin. "Yeah! We made it! We're home! WE'RE HOME!" She agreed, giving an unnatural, real smile. Not the class rep one, that she usually wore. It was normally fake, but had her look more professional, so she kept it on nevertheless.

With a nod, he looked around. "Ha. FUCK YEAH! Suck on THAT world!" Although Ayumi hated foul language, she couldn't help but agree. They returned to safety, which was one of the best things that happened to her. They were finally home. "Heh...heheheheh... Heheheh...heheh..heh..." She giggled, although a little hesitantly, unable to get rid of her hate for the swearing.

Jumping off, Yoshiki began to wander about, walking up to Ayumi, who was busying herself with exploring their classroom. "I never thought I'd live to see home again..." She only told him, turning around immediately. He shrugged and walked towards the center of the room, stopping in his tracks with an upset frown. "Guess there's no Satoshi, or , or anyone else, huh...?"

That had to be wrong.

They were somewhere around, right? It was 8PM by now, according to his check. He never really suspected that amount of time has passed. It felt like eternity. Approaching the doors, he peeked out, venturing out in search of the other seven of his classmates. Even the janitor has likely gone home by the hour, the halls empty. The halls were pitch black, lights turned off. Only a significant amount of a red glow came from where the fire extinguisher was.

Apart from that, nothing else give the signs of life. Thing that hasn't changed was the growing in intensity thunder and rain outside, dwelling over them mercilessly. In contrast to the blackness of the corridors, picking up moisture, the windows looked more whitish instead.

What if this was only a dream? A little trick of his imagination. He hoped not, but couldn't trust himself with his thoughts any longer. "EEEEEEEEEK!" The shriek belonged to no-one else but Ayumi, and with that in mind, the boy rushed hurriedly back into the classroom, almost tumbling over his own feet. He entered the classroom without proper coordination, managing to almost fall once or twice. "Whaaa?" He muttered, frowning.

In the corner of the room grew something in the shape of a black mist, looking like multiple black figures. There were little specks in them, crimson, like blood trickling over it. For a single moment, he easily mistook them for those. It was thoroughly black, like nothing, with swirly arm-like swirls twirling out of it's shape, reaching out for them, their fingers snapping in desire.

"It's...not over, is it... Why isn't it over? Why?!" Ayumi shivered beside him visibly, tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she stared at the black mist, sobbing softly. Looking down upon her, Yoshiki slowly traced his gaze to his feet. "Dammit." He muttered, inaudible to the girl. Slowly, a lightly blue tinted spirit made it's way out of the mist, expression blank as she drew closer. "It's... you!" He gasped, pointing at the ghost.

Yuki Kanno, was it not?

Silent, the ghost stopped for a while, blinked and then moved forth a few more steps. "Nooooo! Don't step any closer! Go back!" Ayumi demanded, withdrawing herself several steps back, where she knelt down and covered her ears, sobbing into her knees. "Ahhhh!" She screamed in clear agony, shaking her head. With a slightly confused expression, the girl stopped obediently.

"It was a rainy evening after school, just like this one... on the day I was kidnapped. I remember I had a fight with my mother that morning." The spirit began, being cut off short by Ayumi interfering her speech. "Wh-Why is she telling us this?" Blinking up, the blue-haired girl struggled to remain calm. They didn't need to hear this story! "I-I have no idea!" Yoshiki shrugged, but beckoned the ghost to continue.

One again listening to their commands, the girl continued. "I didn't want to see her face... so after school, I decided that instead of going home... I'd park myself in the outdoor walkway for a little, and watch the rain. That's when showed up. He sat down next to me. I told him all about my fight with mom, and he listened really closely, and just kept saying, uh-huh, uh-huh... He was sick and couldn't speak much, you see... But he was a very kind man. I really liked him. But then..." She broke out into a sob, hiding her face with her hands.

Both remained silent, knowing exactly what to expect. Her most likable teacher? Didn't that mean he liked her too, if he was concerned for her? It made little sense to kidnap just an innocent child for no clear reason, but some people were twisted in unimaginable ways. Pausing her cries, the ghost looked up through crystal eyes. "You two are nice people."

Even if it was a compliment, it didn't make either of them feel any better. "I'm so sorry." The girl sobbed, feeling her legs wobble under her weight. She was tiny, the ghost. Perhaps she was only a... "Fifth grader... Yuki Kanno... right?" Asked Ayumi slowly, trailing back to Yoshiki's side. "Ah... Thank you... For what you did back there... For making the effort... to help those of us... who were killed in that school." Yuki bowed slightly, like before monarchy.

A sign of gratefulness. "Didn't we succeed, though? So why are you still here?!" Yoshiki asked, scratching his head in pure puzzlement. "No... you didn't." Yuki admitted, looking away for the time being.

"But, we returned your tongues! We gave you back your ability to speak out! And we even got your murderer to repent for what he did! Is it just... that you can't forgive him, no matter what?" Ayumi asked, frowning. "Appeasing us isn't about forgiveness. It doesn't matter whether we forgive or not. Repentance is between the criminal and the victim. It's the sole act capable of moving us. And we exist as fragments of the sacred ground upon which Heavenly Host is sealed. I believe moving us... is your best course of action. But... it's not enough..." The ghost railed off.

It was visible she was close to crying once again, the situation taking a harsh toll on her. "His repentance... just wasn't enough..." Yuki muttered, like it was obvious. Of course, it wasn't. The two teens weren't there. They didn't understand, didn't know what happened. "So you're saying... his words... the words spoken by the doll... weren't good enough to appease you?" The girl asked in a slightly annoyed tone.

All that hard work for nothing!

"That's... not..." Yuki began, but didn't finish, looking down at the tiles again. "...Huh?" the class rep mused, not able to pick up any proper information so far. And she wasn't stupid, either. Didn't they deserve to be told? "So...what, then? Why do you feel the need to trap one innocent stranger after another in the godforsaken place?! You child spirits are the ones who summoned us there, aren't you?"

Like any child scolded, Yuki's voice broke, tears threatening to fall again. She did nothing wrong, neither did Ryou and Tokiko! They were wrong! Wrong, wrong, wrong! "That's... not true..." She murmured defensively.

"The hell d'you mean by that?!"

"We're just the cogs that hold the closed spaces together."

"But you... you killed Suzumoto, didn't you?!"

In the argument, Ayumi joined in. "Wait!"

"Huhh?!"

"Let's hear her out." She looked down at the dead girl, who smiled weakly. "I'm just glad I could bring the two of you back to safety...!" Yuki stomped her foot lightly, feeling wildly unappreciated. "Why the hell are you suddenly so concerned about us?!" He screamed at her, causing the tiny girl to shrink back, bring her hands up, ready to protect herself.

Ayumi looked down at her, and tried to smile to make her feel a little safer herself. "I heard a story like this once from my sister... A lost soul whose life was ended violently and abruptly, leaving her with a mountain of worries and regrets... It's kind of like stopping short at the edge of madness... with all sorts of thoughts and feelings swirling around in your head... Your kindly nature and your sudden hatred and panic begin to spin around and around, and you just start acting out without any sort of control..." She murmured, reciting what she was once told.

She had to be kidding. Seriously, her sister told her that? What was she? Knowing so much about paranormal events and lives certainly didn't belong to the causalities of life. Damn, before getting to the cursed place, he barely believed in ghosts! "Is your sister a medium or something?" He asked, making sure to sound jokingly.

The girl nodded nonchalantly, like it was indeed nothing. "Yeah... something like that." Ayumi agreed. "So what you're saying is that the creepy girl we saw before, and this little girl are two sides of the same coin?" Yoshiki continued dwelling on, trying to make sense out of everything. This was way confusing.

Yuki remained silent, cringing her neck to look up at the tall boy, nodding softly, though it wasn't visible. "I feel for you. I really do. So please...please! Bring the rest of them back! Mochida, Ms. Yui...and everyone else, too... Bring them all back home." The class rep began to plea, holding her hands together like in prayer. No reply.

Persistently remaining silent, the blue tinted girl, flinched slightly at the beg, feeling helpless. "Come on! You can do it, right?!" Ayumi urged, stomping her foot lightly, threatening to cry again. Why could they be saved, and only they?!

"Those closed spaces... have eaten a lot of innocent souls. Far too many, in fact. The grudges of those who died there have filled every last corner of them. There's no room left. And because the agony and pain has nowhere else to go... it's begun feeding on the minds and souls like us who are bound there. It won't be long... before I turn back into the vengeful spirit who attacks people like you without mercy."

In a few plain sentences, any hope was abandoned. So she couldn't bring them back. She couldn't even, for the matter, protect them. "So... we're going to lose you as an ally, then?" Ayumi asked, just to make sure. The answer to the inquire she feared dearly, clinging to the little idea in her mind that perhaps Yuki could fight against it, remain on their side...

Hopeless little ideals they were though. "So why don't you just hurry up and bring them home right now?! Isn't there any way for us to save Mochida and the others?!" She screamed, not comprehending with the reasons why they were in such a doomed spot. "There may be one way..." Yuki admitted to the surprise of the couple. "W-What is it?" Yoshiki asked, titling his head idly.

The girl looked down, shuffling her feet uncomfortably. "I think you already know. You have to return... find all four of us Heavenly Host serial kidnapping and murder victims... and put us all to rest. Then, the closed spaces won't have their cogs anymore, so they'll begin to fall apart... and you just might get your friends back..." She concluded, fearing the hot-tempered teen's reaction.

In that matter, she was indeed correct to be so cautious.

"You expect us...to go back?!" He bellowed at her, running his fingers through his hair. "And this time, instead of just having one person left to appease, we have to go back to the drawing board and appease all four of you?!" The girl stepped back, attempting to cover her ears. She hated to be screamed at, and this was above her. "Why... couldn't you tell us the reason our previous efforts weren't good enough? What is there to hide?"

Shooting a glare at Yoshiki, Yuki turned to Ayumi, who was a little more soft-spoken. "It's just... something I don't want to remember... But... if you really want to know... I'll tell you... I'll tell you everything that happened..." She took a step towards the girl, holding out her tiny hand, which the teen accepted hesitantly, wrapping her bigger hand around the spirit's, and in that single moment, their minds seemed to merge together.

It looked like Ayumi was in some sort of dream, falling limply to sprawl over the floor, Yuki leaning next to her side, eyes closed, a firm hold onto her hand. "Ahh! Wh-What's... going... AHHH!" The girl screamed in her sleep, making Yoshiki stride forth, bringing little to no attention. Neither opened their eyes. "Sh-Shinozaki?!"

"It hurts... It hurts! Aaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh! Ahhgh..."


	22. Chapter 22

"... Huh? What... happened to me? Didn't I... pass out? So why am I fully aware right now? I can't see a thing... and I can't move... It's like that feeling you get when you're really tired... Sleep paralysis, I think." Ayumi mused to herself, voice quiet under her breath. The air was dense, and she didn't dare to take a deeper breath. It felt like it was contaminated with something, chocking her from the inside.

The smell was deeply earthy, like she was on some sort of soil. It felt strange... Someone else was in the room, she could tell. But who? The sounds of constant fidgeting came from her right, along with a few low strains and sounds expressing nothing else by fear. They were high-pitched, suggesting the owners were merely children.

Wherever was she? "Ah! Where...? Why can't I... move...?!"

* * *

The duo picked up the newspaper again, Seiko taking the pleasure in continuing with the article. Despite it's disgusting content, she liked to read the messages scattered about, newspapers included. They weren't always fun to read, but gave her a fuzzy feeling of delight. "Sachiko Shinozaki. The little girl in the red dress, and the lone survivor of the horrific murders that occurred in Heavenly Host Elementary school.

"Following the incident, Sachiko's family fled from the area, moving to another prefecture to escape the frightful memories that remained here. Strangely, however, I've been unable to locate any other records of the Shinozaki family. No matter where I look, the only information I can find about them comes from newspaper reports on the Heavenly Host murders.

Granted, when an elementary school becomes the stage for a grisly incident such as this, perpetrated by none other than the principal's own son... it stands to reason that the scandal would serve as the primary focus for public interest, with all other details fading into the background. So of course, after learning the Sachiko was safe, further news of her whereabouts was largely ignored in favor of the media circus surrounding the school." Seiko read, voice growing softer. Naomi wrapped her hand around her back in comfort, knowing that the innocent teen wouldn't have understanding of how one may do this.

For those reasons, she found it harder to go on, but tried. "B-But there's more to it than that... Pe-People weren't just uninterested in learning Sachiko's story or whereabouts... there was simply n-no data to be found..."

* * *

So it was certain now. She couldn't move due to sleep paralysis, as she guessed. But she could still see parts of the room she was in. The light was dull, and barely gave an outline of what was surrounding her. She couldn't move her head, either, so her first option was to look at the ceiling. Aside from herself, there were three other children. On her right was a girl and a boy.

They were easily recognized by Ayumi as the two spirits haunting Heavenly Host Elementary... But they were still alive. They were tied hand and foot, preventing much movement apart from little wriggles every so often, their pleading moans ringing in her ears. They had blindfolds on, unlike herself. The only thing they shared was their tying, as she too had ropes firmly attached around her feet and hands, digging painfully into her skin.

One of the children was weeping, wailing... For no use. There was no-one there, no help to get. No reaction. A large man approached closer, drawing his steps. The sound of the steps brought one of the children to wail again. "Aaaaaahhh! Aaaaaaggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhh! Someone... please, save me!"

Lowering himself just beside Ayumi, the man cocked his head in wonder, causing the girl to gasp. "Oooh? Oooahh? Oooaagghhh..." The man muttered, leaving the girl to cry. He wasn't probably even understanding any of this! He looked just as confused as they were. "No... stop... NO! PLEASE, NO!" She cried, wriggling. "Eye... Eeeye... Heereeye... Eyess..." He kept muttering, fiddling with his pockets.

"Urgh! Gargh! No... I can't... see..." She wailed. Great. Now she wouldn't even see a thing happening to her. Seeing her hands were tied, she couldn't remove the blindfold, either. She was ultimately met with doom. It made everything so much worse, but due to the lack of sight... her hearing grew tenser.

Frightened sobbing of the children rang off the walls of the cramped room, leaving all of them equally scared... All apart from one... The one girl at her left didn't seem to care. She was so calm, made no noise and no try to free herself. Just lay there, prepared to meet her fatal end... "What are you going to do with me?! Why am I blindfolded?!" She demanded, voice booming compared to the others around her.

"Untie me! Cut the ropes! I want to be able to use my hands and feet! Please!" She begged, while the large man blinked down at her with sorrow, retreating into the corner of the room, where he sat down obediently on his knees, hands on his lap. "PLEASE!" Ayumi screamed after him, helpless.

She kept on begging, pleading, crying, sobbing, struggling... Just to hear the large man's steps grew softer as they drew further away from her. He tried to cover his eyes, not wanting to see the situation unfold. "In... or... der... o... okay?" He asked quietly, his voice hoarse. In order? What did he mean? The question was answered within moments as they very first screamed rang through the room. "Aaahhh! Aaaaaaaahhhhhh! AAAAAGGGGGHHHH! AAAAGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH! YYYYYEEEEEEAAAAAAAGGHHHHHHHHHHH! FUCK!"

An odd sound of some object digging into skin, repeated by multiple stabs. The screams were something completely new, they were filled with primal terror, pure and true. It sliced through the air like a knife. The boy... The boy at the very end... He was being killed! It felt like he was screaming for eternity now. What were they doing to him? Why couldn't he just fall unconscious, and end his own suffering?

At least half an hour have passed by the time. All of a sudden, the inhuman screams came to a halt, dreaded silence filling the space. Without a second warning, the second victim began her screams. "NOOOO! No... No... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The first of the girls, right at Ayumi's side was pleading for her life... And so, the symphony goes...

Gurgles, hacks and chocking sounds came from the side, making the teen to slowly rock sideways. _I'm going to loose my mind! Please stop it, stop it, STOP IT! _She begged inwardly, hiccuping as she sobbed. Was it still going on? _Can't you just die already? ... "Die already"?! God, what's wrong with me?! I don't care... I don't even care... Just get on with it, and leave me in peace._

She was a monster. These thoughts reflected that clearly... She was nothing more than a monster that didn't deserve to be alive. That... That problem will be solved by itself soon enough though. The screams finally stopped, followed by a sound of something heavy being dropped onto the ground. The room grew quiet once more. Footsteps began to near her.

At this point, all her hair stood on end. Everything below her stomach felt like it was frozen. In order... In order... She shouldn't have been relieved with the silence! The kid next to her just died! Which meant... Which meant it was her turn now... Someone was pulling her hair roughly, bringing her up. They were pulling her head up, removing her blindfold. Which meant that she would see her killer!

* * *

"The four missing children were found in a basement room at Heavenly Host Elementary School, unused and officially sealed since the building's construction. When authorities entered, they were greeted with an inhumanly horrific sight. Based upon the evidence at hand, the murder weapon was determined to be a pair of large sewing scissors found in the hands of the accused. Investigators suspected some hesitation on the man's part, however, as the deceased victims' wounds did not indicate that his full strength had been used. Nonetheless, he had clearly acted with extreme malicious intent.

"The official cause of death for the three murdered children were listed to be 'lost of blood followed by removal of tongue'. But the actual state of affairs was not quite so clinical, nor even so "pleasant" (if you can believe it). The following details have been extrapolated from information previously unreleased to the public - or at least, previously unreported by news outlets. These details of the crime are based on the official police testimony of Sachiko Shinozaki herself."

Seiko unwillingly continued, seeing that this was getting somewhere. Maybe a little bit closer to their escape? "Evidently, the victims were bound, blindfolded and spaced out on the floor... then killed, one by one. One was repeatedly stabbed in the abdomen with the aforementioned pair of scissors, then had his internal organs forcefully dug out." A soft sob escaped the brunette who held the paper in her hands, crumbling the corners as she dug her nails into it.

"His discarded innards were found partially buried beneath the earthen floor of the basement room. Another was stabbed in the head dozen upon dozen of times, to such an extent all the flesh and bone above her jawline was essentially minced away."

* * *

With her blindfold removed... The sight that appeared before her was scarier than any other thing in her entire life. The person who stood beside her, with a bloodied pair of scissors in hand, wasn't the large man from earlier at all... It was one of the children!

It was the girl who lay at her left earlier. She was so small... Seven, perhaps? That was her best guess. Her expression was hollow, difficult to explain. Almost confused. She eyed Ayumi carefully with soulless grey eyes, and just like that... started giggling. Matching the color of her dress, her face was covered in the crimson blood of her victims. Her widened eyes give her an appearance as from a horror movie.

A look of a true murderer.

She began to rhythmically snap the scissors, contemplating over all her options. There were so many options, and she didn't want to be repetitive! No, she'll think up something good for the final victim. Something fun, and memorable. The large man from the corner began groaning. "Ahh...aauuu...aaahhaaahh...!" He tried to scream, covering his eyes and rocking slightly.

The girl was opening and closing the bloodied tool over and over again, the sound giving a noticeable chill to Ayumi. The sound echoed through the room continuously without a rest, and finally... Just like that... She lifted the rusty, blood-soaked blades... bringing them closer and closer, movements slow, towards her left eye. Her obnoxious giggles went on, along with the man's groans.

"How... Why... Why is it you?!" Ayumi asked, wincing at how close the blades were to her face. Deadly close... In response, she got a few maniac giggles. No words were phrased, only the childish giggles of pleasure...

"No... Noo... NOOOOOOOOO! AAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

"Want me to continue?" Naomi asked softly, and the crying girl nodded solemnly, hugging her friend tightly from the side as she passed her the newspaper. Poor Seiko... The sheer words written made her sob into her shoulder, which was quite a bad sight. Hugging her tightly with her free arm, she continued where they left off at. The final victim. "The third victim was stabbed in the left eye indeterminate number of times.

"... until her eyeball became soup-like in consistency. She was eventually just left like that, slowly bleeding to death in horrible agony. Strangely, it was only after these mutilations had already been inflicted that the killer went back and severed the victims' tongues. Learning the truth about these proceedings is shocking even to me, and makes it nearly impossible to accept the murderer as anything but a monster."

Naomi closed her eyes, pausing before drawing in a deep breath to steady herself. This was horrible. "And bearing witness to every moment was a 7-year-old girl named Sachiko. In many ways, she's the most pitiable and long-suffering of them all. But it was through her tearful, frightened testimony that Yoshikazu Yanagihori was officially charged." She concluded one of the final paragraphs of the page. There was only another left before the page had to be flipped.

At that stage, it wasn't like she actually felt the want to turn the page, feeling her stomach twist. "Now, going back to the hunt for information on this unfortunate girl's whereabouts, it was her words that ultimately led to Yoshikazu's sentencing. Therefore, it comes as no real surprise that sensitive information pertaining to her and her family would be withheld. That's to be expected.

"What's not to be expected, however, is that there's not even a slightest trace of information left to find. It's as if it simply never existed. Therefore, I cannot help but consider alternate possible explanations...and I remind you, this is mere conjecture... but one question kept on nagging at the back of my mind: Was Yoshikazu Yanagihori really the murderer of the three victims?

"Is it possible this crime was not actually perpetrated by him at all? Think about it. In his final days, Yoshikazu was incapable of communicating with others through speech. And despite his childlike reversion, he'd always been a personable and friendly man. As the saying goes, he wouldn't have hurt a fly. All his relatives, friends and neighbors confirmed as much, shocked to hear that such a kindly man could commit these unconscionable atrocities. He certainly had no motive for the crime, either. There was nothing for him to gain from it."

That sounded like a reasonable argument. If the people that he grew up with could easily confirm he wouldn't have dared to hurt another living being, never mind a human alone, could he had actually committed the murderous crime? "Then again... He might have just lost his mind. Look at his father...

"It was around this same time that Principal Takamine Yanagahori began speaking in tongues and acting in a most peculiar way...not to mention scribbling incomprehensible gibberish all over his walls, as if possessed. He seemed frightened of someone and would often be found crouching in the corner of his office, moaning and thrashing, when visitors came by. If he could wind up in such a beleaguered state with no warning, then perhaps so too could his son...

"I think we are looking at a curse far more powerful than anything man could demise. From the time it opened its doors to the day it closed them forever... Heavenly Host Elementary School's sealed basement rooom has existed as some form of cursed ground. And to find the underlying cause, we must go back beyond the infamous kidnapping and murder incident. Back a whole twenty years."

Twenty? That was so far... And yet, something had to happen those twenty years ago to trigger the incidents that occurred, did it not? Naomi wouldn't believe someone that refused to agree with this. Maybe... Just maybe, then... Yoshikazu truly wasn't the murderer?

"I believe I may have found a clue that could shed some light on the situation. It may be a bit far-fetched, as leads go, but it's a lead nonetheless. Regrettably, since Heavenly Host was not only closed down but demolished altogether, and another school build in its place... it's no longer possible to investigate the basement room directly.

"But my protege has found what may be the next best thing. Something that could make the impossible possible once more. Preparations are being made to pursue this lead even now. Be sure not to miss the next installment. It may be the scoop of a lifetime...

-Kou Kibiki (2003-7-22)..."


	23. Chapter 23

Just loose consciousness. Die. Anything. Anything to bring the pain away would do.

There were moments where almost every single part of her brain clouded... Moments in which she was certain that death or at least unconsciousness was just at the corner, but every single time pain so intense it was beyond belief jerked her straight back to reality, forcing her to live through every single painful second there was left. Any respite from suffering was denied.

Only possibility of the pain to stop was to die, and death was certain, but it was taking eternity to come. The murderer was savoring the torment of her final victim, giggling and laughing all the time, admiring what was happening. Pulling the scissors out of the girl's eyeball, she took a powerful overhead swing and stabbed her again, bringing another wave of pain. "No... Noooo! NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

The screams were like music, music she loved to listen to... It was beautiful! Bringing the bloodied tool out again, she repeated her beforehand action, taking a large swing to stab her again. "NOOOOO! NOOOOOOOOOO! AAAAAAAAAAGGHH! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLGGGGGHHHH! GLLLLLLLLLLLLLGGGHHH!" Sachiko giggled, pulling the scissors out. She held Ayumi up by holding her chin, digging her nails into her delicate skin.

She run the bloodied scissors down the side of her face, leaving a trace behind, along with a stinging cut, but it was nothing to be felt compared to what was happening with her left eye. It wasn't that the girl didn't know that either. She wanted her victims to look the worst possible way, so that in their afterlife... In their afterlife it would haunt them.

Haunt them, like her death haunted her. If she was suffering, every single one of those good-for-nothings could! AND THEY WILL! She'll make sure that promise was fulfilled... Again, she took the scissors away from Ayumi's face, and pierced them through her closed eyelid, repeating that movement over and over again until the thin layer of meat was gone. "Unnnnnnggghhh... gggggglllllgggggh..." And just like that, Sachiko walked away.

Left Ayumi to bleed, while walking to the corner and running a bloodied hand through Yoshikazu's hair, smiling down at him and murmuring something. Thanks, perhaps? She then skipped over to the other bodies and poked around them, making sure that they were dead and such, kneeling down and digging a hole in the soil, burying something under the earth.

It took almost for ever, and death still didn't arrive. Tracing her steps back to Ayumi, her head titled. "You're a tenacious one, aren't you?" She asked her with a soft giggle, forcing the older girl to look at her with her good eye, which was blurred with tears. "Uuuuunnngghh... It hurts! It hurts! Somebody...help me... UULGGH!" Ayumi constantly hacked, chocking on her very own blood.

By that time, Sachiko looked... bored? "It'll all be over if you just die already, you know...?" She moaned to her, slapping her cut cheek roughly with a pout. Without much of a reaction apart from a moan, the teenage girl gurgled. "Ooollgh... aaaaahhh..." She murmured in her crucifying pain. "Heeheehee! Look at that! It's all nice and mushy. Maybe I could scoop it out?"

That wasn't a choice, obviously.

Without a further warning, she began to pull at the air, sliding her fingers around it and pulling at it, the optic nerve being pretty stubborn and for a while not letting go, until it pulled away with a fair amount of flesh. "SHIT!" Ayumi cursed, cowering over. "Okay! Moving on... Open wide and say 'AHHHH!'" Sachiko instructed her, reaching for the scissors again.

"No... Noooo... Please, NOOOOOO!" Ayumi yelled, being cut short as her tongue was gripped during the wails, and something began to dig into it, causing blood to overflow her mouth. With a final giggle, Sachiko looked around, stepping away from the dying female.

"Oh moooommmyyy...?"

* * *

The teen boy looked down slightly uninterested at the girl doubling over beside him, sliding into a sitting position. "My, you're really shaking. What's the matter?" Kizami asked with a grin, offering a helping hand to Yuka so she could return to her feet, walking off behind her, so she wouldn't think of running away or anything of that sort.

He just found his little sister, and there's no way he was loosing her now.

The girl began heading down stairs, but he grabbed her shoulder, stopping her dead in her tracks. "Yuka? I wouldn't recommend going that way. Something dreadful happened downstairs just moments ago..." The tiny in comprising girl looked up to him, and frowned. "Huh?" Deciding to follow his advice, she began to head east to the other doorway instead.

Before going through, she was stopped again, the large hand placed on her shoulder. "You really are shaking!" He repeated, causing her to flinch, but not powerfully enough to find it a noticeable movement. "Ummm... M-May I ask...what your sister is like?" She asked quietly, trying to change the subject fairly badly.

Seeing nothing bad in the inquire, Kizami smiled, nodding. "Oh, certainly. She's a very cute little girl. Quite small, but with great, big eyes." He began, being interrupted by the teen along him, but didn't truly mind. "I-I see..." She agreed, finding the description so far fairly fitting to... herself? Was he just describing her? "Her hair is short... and she's in junior high school." He went on, Yuka remaining silent.

This had to be her! Had to, had to, had to! "Wearing a blue smock..." He grinned down at her, snickering at the expression of shock on her face. "Huh? ...What?" She stepped away from him, trembling. Was he imagining things? She wasn't his sister at all! She was Satoshi's sister! "Hrrrr..." He gulped afterwards, looking down at her.

"Umm... I... I think I'll be... okay on my own... I'll look for my big brother by myself." She told him, attempting to turn around. He took a hold on her hand roughly, snickering again. "... What are you saying, Yuka? I am your big brother. You're my little sister. And there's simply no way out of here. Everyone is going to die. So let's continue to be brother and sister until our dying breaths, for however long we may have..." He laughed at her.

No thought put into further words, actions or anything at all really, the young girl's brain focused entirely on one thing: Fleeing. She had to get away from that Kizami guy as quickly as it would be possible. "U-Umm... Goodbye!" She hurriedly said her farewell, minding her manners as she went, running into the opposite direction.

He told her that something had happened downstairs... Was he right, or did he have something waiting for her in the other room? He was so... Weird. He definitely could be lying at this rate, and she didn't want to take her chances. Through the bottom floor there was a possibility of escaping, and she'll gladly accept that with open arms. Sprinting down the stairs, she slowed down, walking into the second wing's west hall.

However she wished that what she was told was a lie, it in fact was nothing like it. Laying below a hole above, was a boy of around Kizami's age, clutching to his stomach, his hands and uniform stained red with his very own blood. Some poured out of his mouth, making him splutter it. "Eeek!" She screamed in fear, jumping back, before attending his side.

The boy opened his eyes weakly to look at one that may put revenge on the one that did this to him. It was only a little girl, younger than him... She would be no match to Kizami's strength. "Umm... A-Are you alright?" She was stupid. He was obviously not alright, why would she ask something like that?! Regaining his breath, with the little strength he possessed, the teen moved onto his back.

"Wh-Who... are you...?" He asked her weakly, ignoring her earlier question, knowing that the wheezes and pants, groans and splutters he caused were enough to answer. "My name is Mochida. Umm... Y-Your stomach... is bleeding really bad. I'll try to... find something to stop it... My handkerchief... won't help for a wound this big. Come on, Yuka, think... think!" She cupped her face in her hands, letting them flick to her sides limply.

With a few blinks, the boy glared up at her. "Ah! You... You need to... get away from here... right now! Hurry!" He urged her, swiping his hand at her, pointing at the other doorway, knowing that by their luck, Kizami was making his way downstairs just about now. If he found the Mochida girl, he might hurt her too. "But... if I don't do something about your injuries, you're going to die! I'll just... apply pressure, okay? Stay with me!" She ordered him, inching closer.

"No! Please just go!" He hacked, taking on a coughing fit. "Kurosaki! Who on Earth could've done this to you?!" Kizami asked from behind Yuka, causing her to turn around to face him.

No warning given, Kizami used his full strength to plant a solid kick on Yuka's stomach, sending her flying back. "GLGH!" She landed nearby Kurosaki, as he suspected, giving away into unconsciousness at the impact. The sight made a twisted smile grow on his features. "That's for not listening to your big brother Yuka..." He told her matter-of-factly, but the young girl only lay there, twitching, in a puddle of her own urine.

Kizami laughed heartily, clapping his hands in delight. "Pfft... hahahaha! She's going into convulsions! How ghastly!" He snickered, beginning to step closer to Yuka. "Kizami! Stop this! KIZAMI!" Kurosaki kept shrieking at him, voice commanding. Ignoring his "friend", the boy went on, closer to the unconscious girl. "I'm sorry, Kizami." The three words turned his attention, and he looked over his shoulder.

An apology? What for? "Pardon?" He muttered with a confused frown. "I should have done more to stop you... when we were kids. I'm... your best friend, after all. But I never filled that role very well. I never did the things I should've..." He was interrupted pretty rudely by his supposedly best friend. "What are you going on about? Have you really deluded yourself into thinking you're my best friend?! I don't recall you ever standing up for me... not even one time!"

Giving a soft chuckle, Kizami nodded. "Heh... yeah... I... I guess I... really haven't... been a very good friend..." He agreed, hacking between his words. "Ha! Well, you won't be regretting that for long. But I must say..." Taking his focus on the boy, Kizami knelt next to his side. "I am rather curious about these 'things you should have done' as my so-called best friend. Please, do enlighten me!"

* * *

Sobbing gently, Seiko looked up at Naomi, like a child in class sitting herself on the floor, legs crossed and intently listening. "The girl in the red dress?" She repeated quietly, cocking her head. "I think we may have seen her. Her ghost, anyway. When we were... in one of the dark classrooms... She was crouched down on the ground, and... staring right at us..." The short-haired girl agreed quietly.

Blinking, the other girl nodded. "And wasn't she there somewhere when we were walking with Yuka?" She asked, trying to put her two bits into the conversation too. "Yeah... it's like she's keeping an eye on us..." Naomi voiced her thoughts, making Seiko close her eyes in thought. "She was on the pictures of the victims, too. In some newspaper. I mean, I swear this is Sachiko! But why was she listed as a victim then?"

Naomi looked down in thought. "But how is that possible? According to what we just saw, Sachiko wasn't killed. She survived... And if that's the case...shouldn't she have grown up into a proper adult by now? She'd have to look older than us, at the very least... Staying behind in a place like this, in child form, with the other victims... just... doesn't make a whole lot of sense, does it?" She asked, expecting no reply.

Like usually, however, Seiko nodded in agreement. "Yeah. That bothers me too." She agreed, although sometimes she didn't truly mean it. Naomi was much smarter than her, so she probably knew better. "Maybe unrelated to those murders, just a little weeny beeny tiny bit later on, she died too? One's for sure, though, she lost her life! And if her ghost looks like a child, then she had to die early, didn't she? What if that's the key to getting out safely? I'll take my chances with this school's curse or whatever it is! Whenever we find Yuka, what say we look for Sachiko as well, hmm? Na-om-iii?" She asked her childishly.

"Okay... Though I am worried. I haven't heard Yuka's voice at all since before you found me." The girl admitted, rubbing her arm idly. "Yeah, we'll just... We'll have to find a way to the other building, right? That can't be all that hard, can it not?" All of a sudden, the building began to shake.

In one way or another, this felt different. It was purely violent, the ground beneath them rumbling with no mercy and no meaning of stopping. The roof began to collapse under the pressure. "ARE YOU OKAY NAOMI?! Here, take a hold on me!" Seiko screamed, ducking to her knees, and wrapping herself protectively around Naomi as a living shield.

"Don't let go, ok- GLGH!" Without a warning, Seiko fell limp, but her chest still rose and fell, only unevenly.


	24. Chapter 24

Strength wasn't at his side. He had lost a lot of blood, and knew that doing what he was just about to would only make the certain death come quicker. He didn't care that much, though. "Oh, I dunno, maybe something like THIS?!" With all the power he could manage, he threw a punch, seeing that Kizami had knelt beside him, successfully bringing it down on his face, sending him stumbling back. Recollecting himself, the tall teen rubbed his jawline.

"Gah! That really hurt, you know..." He whispered to him, although a permanent smile glued to his lips. Applying some pressure to his stomach, panting heavily, Kurosaki looked to his side where the voice came from, a smile of his own appearing, but as it came as it went. "Stop blaming other people for everything, you fucking coward!" He ordered him, groaning and hacking afterwards.

The punch really increased his pain, for sure... "You son of a bitch..." Kizami growled, shifting his knife from inside of his closed palm, the blade sprouting out, glowing dangerously in the dim light. He shakily stood upwards again, staring coldly at his supposed friend. "Take a good look around you, Kizami. Take a good look at who you're against at!"

Indeed. The only two people he was facing was an injured boy, who wouldn't last too long, and a girl young and petite, laying unconscious nearby. What did he have to do with that? Yeah, he caused that to happen, but who were they to earn his genuine sense of guilt? They were a waste of space. They were nobody, needless little things, so easy to break and so useless it was sickening.

Placing one hand over his bleeding mouth, Kurosaki took a few, deep shallow breaths. "No one is conspiring against you! We're no threat! We're your friends!" He added, more quietly now. He could practically feel life seeping away from him. Closing his eyes, he waited for any sort of response. "Aaaahahahaha! That's bullshit, and you know it. You're a fucking coward, Kurosaki." He told him with a wicked laugh, inching closer.

Not waiting, nor bothering, for a reply, he knelt beside him, taking his hand off his bleeding wound and slowly, with care, cutting a neat whole in his clothing, ripping it apart further to reveal some skin, bringing his knife up, ready to draw one of the final cuts.

* * *

A while must have passed. "Hagh!" Yes, some time did pass. And something... something was wet around her. What was it? With a frown, Yuka opened her eyes, trembling greatly. She tried to make out what happened, but she must have hit her head, or something along those lines, for she struggled to remember. "My... stomach... It... really hurts... Uuuggghh... Big... bro... ther...!" She cried, lifting herself up.

A deeper, male voice rang from somewhere close by, but her ears were ringing, and stomach was hurting, so she couldn't recognize it at first. "Back to your senses, are you, Yuka?" The voice asks, and she sat up, pulling away from the source of moisture. She could briefly make out a figure of a tall man, or at least close to a man in age, hovering a laying body. A fair amount of blood surrounding both.

Where that came from, she couldn't tell. Finally, after not replying, the boy looked over his shoulder. Kizami? His eyes were wide, blood on his cheek, not to mention other parts of his body too. "Everything is just fine now. Your big brother will protect you. Your big, strong brother will make sure to keep you safe..." He told her, and Yuka instinctively jumped up.

"...! Aaaaaagh! Noooo!" She shrieked, immediately sending herself off to the closest exit. She stopped in the doorway, hearing him grumble some more. "What's this? A key? "Science Lab," it says. Heh. Guess you won't be needing this anymore, Kurosaki..." Lifting the item up, Kizami began a close inspection of it. "Aaaahhh..." The girl moaned, closing her teary eyes.

Putting no mind to that, Kizami lifted himself up, turning to face her. "Isn't it just horrible, the way these spirits kill people? You wouldn't want that to happen to you... right...?" He trailed off, giving a clearer view on the body that lay next to him. One of a boy in the same uniform as himself, disemboweled. The sight was disgusting. All of what was... well, supposed to be inside, was no thrown carelessly across the floor.

Like it was a normal thing, Kizami moved on. "Well, don't worry. I won't let them. No, I'll protect you from that horrible fate. For you see... I'll bring an end to it myself! I'll snuff out that tiny... tiny... life of yours..." He continued, stepping closer. "YAAAAAAAAGH! BIG BROOOTHEEEER!" Tripping and falling, Yuka began to hurriedly crawl through the nearest doorway, seeking a way to protect herself. "Ahahaha! Come on! No fair running! Wait for me!"

With a deep breath, she stood up again. She was once again in the second wing entranceway, with no clue where to go and what waited ahead. All she knew was that she had to run.

Fast.

Shinohara and Nakashima should be in the other wing, so maybe... She ran over to the front door, and pool their handles. They were sealed up tight, with no key, she wasn't going to be able and open them. Seeing a tall silhouette step through the door, she ran for the east exit, and as Kizami followed, she smirked to herself and took a sharp turn, sprinting for the room she just moved out of.

Surprisingly, it worked, and she was able to find her way back without getting caught. Without a second thought, she ran for the stairwell. There were multiple options there, so it would be a little safer, she supposed. "I'm going to kill you... I'm going to kill you, Yuka! Hey! Yuuukaa?" The shouts rang behind her, but she didn't dare to look back. That could mean the end of her, and she didn't want that.

Running to the second floor, she headed for the east staircase. "Come out, come out wherever you are! Be a good girl, Yuka, and come with me!" Whimpering softly, she pushed on. Her muscles ached from the sudden need of movement, but she didn't dare stopping.

Stopping meant certain death. As she went through the east side of the entranceway of the second wing, she managed to find something laying on the ground, where a ghost had been before. She hadn't really noticed it. A younger girl was sitting in the corner, minding her own business, not paying attention to anything that was going on. Seeing she was so silent, and barely moved, she wasn't hard to miss.

A tag went with the key. "Front Doors" it read, and she sighed in relief, going for the entrance. "Eeek!" The cabinet that Kizami lifted earlier collapsed once again, blocking the other way. It was fine, though, she guessed. She had the key, the very thing that could mean her safety. Opening the door in a hurry, she took the key with her, and closed the door behind her, hoping that it would be able to keep Kizami back. At least for a while.

Panting, she took the key into her pocket and went running on into the main wing. She stopped to regain her breath, but knew that from the loud bangs from behind, she didn't have time to rest. A little girl in the red dress turned from the corner, skin tinted blue. She beckoned Yuka over. "This way... Hurry!" She told her. This being the best option she had, the teen followed the ghost up a set of stairs, and through a stretched corridors, hearing the same shouts behind.

Going right past the Infirmary, she managed to pick her way on north, where the ghost led her, Kizami hot on her heels. "Run, rabbit, run! Gahahaha!" He yelled after her with a pleased tone. As he began to slowly walk on, Yoshikazu himself went through the Infirmary's door, taking his sledgehammer and creeping behind the older teen, landing a successful, deadly strike upon his cranium.

The girl in the red dress followed, and motioned for him to come over. Obedient, he took the boy by one of his feet, and began to pull him along.

* * *

_"Seiko!"_

_With a soft giggle, the girl rocked on her feet, standing on her tiptoes, hands folded behind her back. The innocence she was trying to reflect worked greatly, making her look like a child. Unknown to anything bad that she might have done, and unknown of consequences that may have followed. Her large amber eyes reflected that state of mind, showing nothing but pure glee to be noticed._

_"Hmm? What may it be, Naomi, dear?" She asked in a voice equally innocent to her posture, looking up at the older girl with mild curiosity. She knew very well what she had done, but goofing around, rather than admitting it was much, much better. She knew a thing or two about that._

_Naomi groaned loudly, running her fingers through her short hair, annoyed with her friend. She acted so innocent, when there were so many people that saw crystal clear what she had done only seconds ago! She could be such a pain, Seiko, sometimes! "What did I tell you about... doing THAT... in public? We're in school, for heaven's sake! may have came in! What would you do if that happened?"_

_A little frown planted itself on the girl's face as she shrank back, before she grinned widely and wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "You dirty, you! Thinking like that of your own teacher?" She mused, making Naomi's eyes widen, the girl wriggling her way over and covering her mouth with her hands, squeaking. "NO! Shut up! I never said anything like that! EWW! WHAT THE HE-!"_

_Retreating her hands, she looked down at the one that covered Seiko's mouth directly. Through the light of the lamps hanging above, it was easy to see they were gleaming. She LICKED her! She actually, truly licked her hand! What was wrong with her?! "Mmm... Tastes like my Naomi!" Seiko purred, licking her lips eagerly. "You're disgusting, you know that?" Naomi asked her, with a giggle wiping her hands quickly on Seiko's uniform._

_The action itself didn't seem to bring her attention. "NAOMI! What did I tell you about doing THAT in public? We're in school, for heaven's sake! may have came in! What would you do if that happened?!" Seiko recited what Naomi told her seconds ago, making the teen cover her own mouth, eyes widening again. "I didn't mean it! No... SHUT UP!" Seiko laughed uncontrollably, clutching her stomach._

_At the moment, their teacher walked through the door. The students on their feet ran for their desks. "Shinohara, what's wrong, dear? What's so funny?" She asked, and Seiko giggled maniacally. "I'll tell you later, sensei!" She called from her row, waving wildly. Chuckling herself, nodded, sitting behind her desk._

_Poking Naomi lightly, Seiko passed the girl next to her a note. Unwrapping the piece of paper, she read the message written inside sloppily._

_'Want a replay at lunchtime?' Naomi squealed, making to look her direction. "Nakashima! Were you listening? Come over, you can write the answer on the board, alright?" Although the words were meant to sound stern, Shishido sounded pitifully friendly. Nodding, Naomi cleared her throat, standing up and mouthing 'I hate you' to Seiko, walking to the front of the room._

_She took the chalk into her fingers, feeling the dust leave marks on her fingertips already. "I-I... What was the question again, Ms?" She asked in embarrassment, laughter bubbling loudly from behind._

* * *

That was a long journey. The boy was panting, running down the staircase. He stopped mid-way, looking around. There was an entraceway nearby, and he stopped not far. "Mayu? Mayu! Where are you?! How long have we been here? ... It must be the middle of the night by now..." Morishige sat down, leaning against a wall. "My... am I ever... so thirsty..." He panted to himself, closing his eyes.

He was trying to remember Mayu. His dear little Mayu. "Oh, Mayu... Don't you realize how very worried I am about you? How are you holding up right now, I wonder? What sorts of thoughts are swimming through your mind? You scare so easily...and you've such a fragile soul... You really do need me by your side." He thought aloud, and felt like snoozing off.

_Morishige himself was trailing down the Kisaragi Academy halls, stopped by a call. "Shige, bro! Wait up! Huh? What's wrong? Not going to the club today?" Mayu asked him, walking to his side, smiling in greeting up to the taller teen._

_"Hmm... That's a good question. What IS wrong?" Morishige mused, shrugging lightly. Although he didn't notice it, Mayu was blushing softly, whimpering as heat came waving onto her cheeks. "They're holding audtions for the lead, y'know!" She urged him, poking his arm gently. He wasn't fragile or anything. In fact, although he wasn't athletic, she could easily sense muscle underneath the school blazer._

_It wouldn't have been painful if she put force into it. But she couldn't bring herself to do anything like that. "Oh, I know. But...I just don't think I'm cut out for the role." He told her nonchalantly, and she gasped. Not in the actor way, no. She was really surprised. He was perfectly fit for the role! He was an amazing actor! She knew so many people that would like to be like him._

_Biting on her lip, she looked up to him. "How come? I mean, I've seen how much you want it. You've been poring over that script for the last month! Not to mention practicing lines in the gym equipment room..." She told him, wrapping her arms around his own, pulling at it in an urging manner. "Y-You saw that?! How.. embarrassing... Next time, you should say something!" He instructed her, ignoring the pulling._

_Mayu swallowed, afraid for a moment he might be angry with her. "But you were so into it! I was actually just kinda happy to see you in your element like that." She continued on, still attempting to persuade him. Sighing, he looked away. "Well, either way, I'm giving up on that particular goal." He concluded, hoping to be left in peace._

_"But why?! After all that study and practice..."_

_"Everyone knows the parts in our productions are chosen based on popularity, not acting talent. Mayu... You're an upright, idealistic individual... so you're probably going to think I'm a bit of a spineless coward for this... but I refuse to attend an audition when I know it won't make a bit of difference."_

_"Awww..."_

_"I truly hate it. I always make an effort at attending social events and put a pleasant front... But... well, I guess it all comes down to the fact that I'm simply not well-liked." He explained, blinking down at his very own feet. _

_"But I like you!" Mayu protested with a small frown. She didn't want Shige to be so sad... "You're a good actor, Shig. You shine in the spotlight. Really shine! And you look like you're enjoying it, too!" She told him, feeling her blush deepen. "... But if you hate it so much, then yeah... it's really not worth it. I mean, if you have to force yourself, then you're not having any fun at all, right? And what's the point in that? Besides, at least I got to see it. Shig's secret Raskolnikov!" She cheered, getting a flustered smile in return. "Ah...!"_

_"Come on. We'll head out together. Oh, but how about we stop at the crepe stand on our way home? Doesn't that sound yummy?! Chocolate bananas, man! They apparently have a new one on the menu, and I'm just itching to try it out! Heheh!" And they went... They went home, with crepes on the way. Just the very night before they went in for the school's festival._

The boy sighed, reopening his eyes. "Mayu... I'm well aware... If I'm not there for you, Mayu, it's plain to see how much danger you'll be in..." He murmured, talking to himself due to the lack of companionship he earned himself. Well, he met a few people, but if they weren't Mayu, then he wasn't interested. "That's what I've been telling myself all this time, anyway."

Every word... He was admitting to something. Something bigger than just her presence, always there for him... Hopefully she was hearing all this.

"Heheh...but that's not the real reason I'm trying so hard to find you. No, nothing so noble. Every time I saw your face, and heard you greet me with that "Shig, bro!" you'd always say... you were saving my life. Please, Mayu... I need you... Please, Mayu... Show yourself! Don't...leave me all alone..." He begged her, falling to his knees in misery.

Cautiously, he lifted his phone out of his pocket. "Damn... Just once more. I have to see suffering of others. It's the only thing keeping me sane! ... And I am still sane... I am..." He told himself, opening the clap and clicking a few buttons. The screen lit up with the pictures he had, the number of them drastically increasing since his arrival.

Looking at the tiny square boxes, he smiled, chuckling. "God, I've taken so many of them... So many pictures of the dead... It's so weird. They're all real, honest-to-goodness corpses...but to me, they just look like fakes. Nothing but props. Realistic ones, granted. Much more detailed and lifelike than the cheap, fake bodies you see on television, and in movies... Heh... Hahaha... Hahahahahahaha..." He began laughing, hysteric.

He searched soullessly for his favorite. The body close by the Infirmary, splattered mercilessly on the wall with such strength no human could manage, not to mention speed. "Hmmm... This one is the flashiest by far. Utterly pulverised against the wall near the infirmary... Hoooo... Absolutely breathtaking. She's been reduced to nothing more than a chaotic jumble of flesh... but not long ago, all of it was connected. This was once a human being, walking and talking, with a mind of her own..." He hummed.

The little song was one of the worst a human could sing, but he didn't care. His voice suddenly became chirpy, the picture bringing him pleasure. "Shoudl there truly be an afterlife... she must be embarrassed to show her face there, with such a hideously disfigured appearance! I'd probably feel bad for her, if she weren't a complete stranger... Haha..." He took in a deep breath to calm down, not wanting to laugh again.

All of a sudden, the phone began to ring. "...? What's going on?! If I'm receiving a call, then why is the blasted thing still in photo view mode...? There's no message telling me who's calling, either. Just a ringtone. Maybe the OS is shot..." In curiosity, he answered the call. "D o n ' . . . D o n ' . . ." The voice was familiar...

"... Huh?"

" ' . . ."

"Wh-What?!"

" ' . . . . . . . . . . . ."

"Ahh...aaahhh...aaaaaaahhhh!" In his shock, the boy dropped the phone, clutching his head. "Aaaaa-Aaaahhh... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHH! AAAAHAAAAHHHH... AAHAAAAAAHHH... YAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHHHH!"

And he ran off, the thought of Mayu being dead... Of already being dead... Of him liking the sight he took so much liking too... It was unbearable. Something he could not live with... And so, he didn't want to live. He easily ended his life, not locating a hole through which he fell, bones shattering to the point of dust, leaving nothing but a twisted corpse in his place.


	25. Chapter 25

"NOOOOOOO! PLEASE, DON'T KILL ME! DON'T KILL ME, PLEASE! NOOOOOOO!" The teen screamed, now sitting upright on her knees, although her eyes were still closed tightly. The screams rang in the empty classroom, filled with dread.

A tall boy stood over her, shaking her by the shoulder gently. "Come on Shinozaki! Shinozaki! Snap out of it!" He ordered her, eyes wild with terror. She had been screaming for a while now, and yet couldn't explain what was going on. Yuki had edged away by now, so shouldn't she wake up? He felt some sort of pain in his stomach, and force pushing him aside. Did she just smack him? "AAAAaaahh...Aaaaa-aaaaaggghhh!"

She wasn't waking up... Or maybe was she? He couldn't tell. While recollecting himself from the thrown punch, she began to cough and splutter, trying to regain her breathing. She continued to wheeze, eventually slowing to a semi-normal panting. That took time however. "Waaaaaaaaaaaaahhh... Aaaaaaaaaaaaaggggghhh..." She wailed helplessly.

Standing by her side once more, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Hey now... Uh, it's okay... Everything's okay... okay? Come on, Shinozaki. Everything's fine. You're safe." He told her, voice as soothing as possible. With a frown, she made some loud sniffing sound, disgusting him to be honest. "What the?!" He understood she had been crying, but... "That's what happened to me..." Yuki murmured from the back.

"What... was it like? What did you see?" Yoshiki asked the girl, blinking down at her as she came back to her senses. "I saw... the true identity... of the... the murderer..." She explained shakily. "Huh...?" He asked with confusion twisting on his face, stepping away a step from Ayumi. "That's why the damned doll...wasn't enough... Repentance from... the killer... We had the wrong person!" She sobbed, cupping her face in her hands.

The boy rocked on his feet, scratching the back of his head. "Wait, are you telling me... you were actually there? Like, you saw the scene of the murders?!" He asked her in shock.

Way to go, for someone that swore to protect her. "That's exactly what I'm saying. I-I was... seeing everything... through Yuki's eyes... I was bound... and then... then I was killed." She told him, voice breaking as she struggled not to sob again. Turning to Yuki, the boy raised a fist, not meaning to harm her, though, of course. "..! Goddammit, you little piece of-" He screamed at her.

"It's not her fault! I'm the one who wanted to know..." Ayumi stopped him, tugging at his free arm. "The murderer was a little girl. You remember the newspaper article Suzumoto showed us? Her photo was in it. Along with her name. It's the little girl in the red dress... Sachiko Shinozaki. She was listed as one of the victims, but believe me, she's no victim!"

Swallowing to calm himself, Yoshiki turned back to his companion, looking down at her with faint confusion. "...Wha...? Heh... No, that can't be right. That's impossible! For a little girl to do something like... that... How could she abduct other children her own age? And keep them prisoner, no less! I could believe it if it were that monster with the hammer... He seems fully capable of kidnapping and tying up little kids any day of the week..." He thought aloud.

The blue-haired girl, dusted off her skirt sadly. "He was... just an accomplice! When these children were killed by Sachiko... the man with the hammer was in the corner of the room, quaking in fear." She disagreed. She saw him. How confused and scared he looked. He clearly didn't want to hurt anyone, but was forced into doing so.

A victim himself. "... You... can't be serious..." Yoshiki murmured, frowning down at her. How could a man like him be "quaking in fear"? "I have no idea why he would've helped Sachiko in the first place, though... We have to tell the others! Mochida, and Ms. Yui..." Ayumi insisted, using him to lean on as she stood up.

A slow nod given, he offered his hand for her to take and haul herself up. "Y-Yeah, I guess..." He agreed, used to doing that in her case by now, and enjoying it thoroughly. Sometimes, she might have even smiled up at him, just because he helped her win an argument or something. That was enough for him. "Even Naho wasn't able to find the whole truth, and she's been here longer than any of us!" Minus Yuki, obviously.

Turning to face Yuki, she took her hand in her own, feeling a soft chill pass down her spine. "If we don't hurry up and tell them, they'll be dead before they ever find out! If Sachiko catches them unaware, it could all be over! We have to go back, Yuki please! Take us back to the closed spaces! We'll find a way to exorcise you, and all the other spirits trapped in Heavenly Host! I swear!" She pleaded her.

The 11-year-old looked down at her feet, shuffling them, wrapping her cold hands around the older girl's. "I... wouldn't recommend that. As a result of your interference, as well as the interference of your friends...those spaces are in a state of critical flux right now. If I were to take you back... even if I kept this clarity of mind the whole time... I doubt I'd ever be able to bring you back home again..."**  
**

Ayumi shook her head, continuing her pleads. "But... If we don't go back... everyone's going to die! Kishinuma... Let's go. Please? For our friends... Come on... For Mochida..." She told him, and although the imply on Mochida annoyed him more than persuading him, he nodded. What else was he supposed to do? For God's sake, he only had a few friends... He couldn't afford to loose them. Even he himself wasn't that ignorant and selfish.

And dammit was he known for that.

In the hurry, Ayumi rolled her eyes at him. "What's that? What are you mumbling about?" She asked quietly, and he shook his head, smiling. "Nothing. Nothing at all! Let's go!" He told her, although hoped he could see Miki, his little sister just once more... One more time... Guess that'll have to wait.

* * *

Where was Naomi? She missed her already, and she was only gone for so long. Why would she remember that event anyway? It happened so long ago. Seiko couldn't comprehend why she would be supposed to remember something like that, especially since they were in fact in Heavenly Host. This was maybe a place for remembering.

She could easily remember quite a few things to do with her best friend, and seeing that death was always there, somewhere, she wouldn't be too surprised if remembering her, or Naomi remembering her would be too difficult. The school put that into one of the most obvious things. Naomi told her she would be sad if she died... And now, that it felt like it twice that night, would she really?

Would Naomi truly miss her?

Would her death have such an impact on her?

Probably not.

She was just a tiny piece of her life, easy to be thrown away and replaced. Through all these years, however annoying she was, whatever she had done, Naomi never once told her that she would rather be with anyone else. Never truly complained. Yes, she scolded her, quite often at that, but she never actually had said anything to suggest distaste towards her. She knew already that she was "irreplaceable".

That was of different reasons however, that was certain. Apart from their little group of friends, and , nobody accepted her explosive personality all that well. She might as well say that they had hatred for it. She kept disturbing them. Kept them focused only at her, for her shouts and perversion. But Naomi was there all the time, and somehow she felt like she didn't truly mind.

"Na... om... i-i..."

* * *

They were back. Back in hell, that was. Ayumi steadied herself, along with Yoshiki. They were in some strange room. Neither had wandered into there before. There stood a cabinet, with a note written on it saying: 'Entry to the Empire of Japan's secret intelligence base is strictly forbidden. EXPULSION TO ALL TRESPASSERS!'

Apart from that, there was nothing, so both began to head out of the room. As they were before the doors, they were stopped by Yuki running up to them, a statue in her arms, cradled like a child. "I'm sorry. I really am... But I wish you the best of luck! This is something I think Seiko and the others may need. If you find them, please give it to them for me." She told them, handling over the statue with extreme care.

Taking the marble statue from the girl, Yoshiki blinked at her. "Uhh... Why don't you give it to them yourself?" He asked, knowing that it sounded quite easy. Well, it was pretty difficult to actually state whether it was easy or not exactly, since he still didn't understand the situation but... She just did give _them _the statue. "Because... she's following them around the school right now. I can't get close enough..."

The ghostly girl sighed, rubbing her arm awkwardly. "There's another statue like it, though. A red one. If you find it, make sure she gets that one, too." She told them, slowly, so that the information could sink in. "Understood." Ayumi nodded.

"The three of us are prepared for the challenges ahead, now that our tongues have been restored. But due to our momentary awakening, the balance of these closed spaces has began to collapse. Be very, very careful. Also, remember, in order for Sachiko to feel remorse, you must appeal to her humanity. You must purify her soul. It's the only way. My mind... has already come under attack. So the next time you see me... Run!"

With those words, the girl vanished. "She's gone..." Shinozaki moaned, quite upset with the fact. They just lost an ally... "Yeah. For now, let's just focus on finding Seiko, Ms. Yui and the others. Though aside from Ms. Yui, the only other people we've seen so far are Suzumoto and Morishige... And we explored pretty much everywhere. You sure the others are even here?!" He asked, cocking his head.

The girl nodded fiercely, keeping to the thought of them being alive. "Well...think about it. Remember? The closed spaces? That first ghosts we saw told us all about them when we got here with Ms. Yui. Basically, anyone we can't find is probably in another version of the school. Which is why we never ran into them. Is there something you failed to understand?" She asked him viciously, seeing he grew silence.

Thrown off the track by the reply, he shook his head. "Huh? Uh, no, I... yeeeah... But, wait a minute. If that's the case, how the hell are we supposed to tell them about the murderer?! I mean, if we can't even find them..." He grunted, thoughts of similar type nagging him. "Yuki just told us how! She said the closed spaces have started breaking down. That might mean... SHOULD mean that the connections between the dimensions are changing too! So come on, let's try searching for them again! Ms. Yui, and everyone else!" She urged him.

He puffed out his chest, certainty in his eyes. "Okay! Got it!" He told her, preparing to leave. "... For real?" She asked him, making him close his eyes, slightly annoyed by the distrust. "When I say I got it, I got it! ... Although... if it's not those child spirits summoning hordes of innocent people into this school and trapping them here until they die... Then you kind have to ask yourself, who IS responsible... you know?" He answered plainly, stepping out of the room.

Murmuring an agreement, she stepped after him.

As they wandered through the halls, Ayumi paused for a moment. "Hey... does anything look... different to you?" She asked him finally, looking around. "Very." He agreed, running his fingers over a nearby wall. "This... isn't the same school we were in before. It's a totally different Heavenly Host!"

"Yeah, and its creepy factor is through the roof. The chill in the air, the constant dark presence... It's all worse than ever. We need to find the others, and get the hell outta here."

"Yeah." Ayumi set off again, letting him catch up. They seemed to be stuck on the west side, east being unreachable at the moment. Yet, there were visibly a few things over at the other side. Since there was nothing more to see on the floor, they began to walk off to a nearby staircase. Arriving at the west of the first floor hall, they began to head on east.

For a moment, Yoshiki stopped, calling Ayumi's attention. "H-Hey, Shinozaki, um..." Ayumi turned around to face him with an eager smile on her face. One step closer to finding Mochida! "Are you... hurt? You've got a whole lot of blood on... um... your posterior..." He trailed off, chuckling nervously. "Huh? Wh-Wha... Are you serious?!" She asked, trying to take a glimpse herself.

Gulping, noticing her tone changed, he nodded. "You scrape your butt on a piece of broken wood or something? Looks kind of pai-" He began, but was cut short by the girl. She was blushing a crimson color at that stage, covering her butt with her hands, gasping. "Shut the hell up already! Geez! Just look another way a minute!"

Running off a few steps away, she stopped in a hall leading in all different directions, stopping to think what to do. "God, does that boy have no sense of shame?! Dammit all... What do I do about this? I don't have my gym bag here, so changing is out of question. I really don't want to meet up with Mochida or the others looking like THIS, though... Goddammit... GoddammitgoddammitgodDAMMIT! I can't take this anymore!"

Not honestly alarmed by the screams, Yoshiki turned around and began to look behind them, ending up counting floorboards and such in boredom. Looking around, Ayumi stood up with a frown, walking up to an item close by. "...? What's that? Oh my God... It's an ID name tag from Kisaragi Academy! Someone we know must be nearby! Wonder who's it is... Ah! Nakashima's... No mistaking it. It's even still got the scrap of paper from the Sachiko charm!"

Picking the ID up, she pulled it into her pocket for further saving. If they met up with Nakashima, she'd probably want that back, wouldn't she? A few steps sounded behind her as Yoshiki pulled up, afraid something might have happened.

"Shinozaki, what the hell is taking you so long?! ...Hmm? Is that...someone's student ID?" He asked, pointing at the scrap in her hands. "It's Nakashima's! She must be somewhere nearby! Nakashima? Are you there?! If you are, please, answer me!" She began to call out in her excitement, turning around all directions.

Shrugging, Yoshiki joined in. "Nakashimaaaa! ... Guess she's not THAT nearby..."

"Let's look for her. She can't be far!"

_Author's Note: _From time to time, you may see me posting a chapter of either only Ayushiki or **Senomi, due to how lengthy their parts may be, but at the end, quite a few chapters will be ONLY Senomi, so that should pay you all back (:

**Seiko x Naomi = I don't know the true shipping name I'm sorry don't eat me this one sounds cute I think /w\  
If anyone knows the real name, please do tell me in the reviews for future reference!


	26. Chapter 26

"Ugh... my head's sore..." Seiko moaned aloud, awakening from her inner thoughts and whatnot. "Was that all a dream? Naomi... There was an earthquake, was there not? Uh... I can't remember anything. Hmm? I've got something in my hands!" She giggled, pausing to take in the shape and feeling better. It was tender and soft, like some sort of meat.

As that thought flashed through her mind, she squealed in joy. Naomi! "Rnng... Nnnnnnng..." The girl below her groaned in pain. "Seiko? What are... you?" Naomi asked, as Seiko laughed loudly, humming in joy. She fondled Naomi's breasts with care, giggling as she did so. "NAOMI!" She shrieked at her, rolling off her to lay beside her.

Ignoring the touch, Naomi looked up at her with a small frown of concern. "Is your head okay?" She asked, aiming to touch the other girl's head gently. "Perfectly! Why?" Was it another of those silly 'you're stupid-and-overactive-and-annoying' joke? She was fine. "A beam fell on your head during the quake...and it started bleeding... Thanks... Thanks for shielding me." She muttered, sitting up, with Seiko climbing back onto her again.

"No problem! It was really fun, m'dear!" She told her with a perverted giggle to confirm Naomi's suspicions. She didn't bother to scold her or anything, however. Not even remove her as she climbed onto her. The TV nearby brought her attention away from her friend's silliness, as the screen flashed and some voices were to be heard. "Wow this is incredible! What is this place? Where are we?" One of the voices asked, most likely the cameraman for he wasn't to be seen.

The video itself was dark and hard to make out, but it still showed a man with blue hair, purple streaks in them. He was seemingly the reporter of the documentary. "Deep breaths, Taguchi. Stay calm, keep a steady hand and don't stop filming. I want every single detail captured on video. Don't miss even a speck on the wall!" The man demanded, yet in a rather relaxed and friendly tone. "Yes, sir!"

View showed some of the familiar walls, moving to the man from before again in slower motion. "Amazing... I can't believe it worked. This is sure to get me the recognition I deserve! With this footage... with this film, the occult genre will be completely reborn! Alright. Let's get started. I think it's about time we start penning our third 'Strange but True' article. Experiencing this place in the flesh should prove a sufficient enough muse to get the words flowing."

Seiko blinked, crawling over to the screen and poking it.

"They are in this school, aren't they?" She asked, knowing Naomi had much more oil in her head than she did. "This is that tape you put in earlier, right?" Naomi asked instead, and Seiko nodded. "I think so. But how? There were no batteries... There was no power! How does it work?" She asked in turn, swapping the next quire in hand. "Looks like research footage taken by whoever it was that brought it here." Naomi observed.

The voices started up again, the man, Taguchi speaking up first. "Ma, this place is unbelievable. Everywhere you look, there's something written down! "I don't... want... to die"? Wooow, crazy stuff!" The boy cooed, letting the camera flash a quick shot of one of the notes clipped to the wall.

The man in command frowned slightly at him, shaking his head. "Just be careful. We don't have a lot of data on this place yet. We have no idea what might happen here. It's best not to touch anything." He told him his own advice. "Ehh, you're no fun! With such deliciously dark scenery all around us, I have to at least take in our surroundings, you know?"

"I suppose you do..."

"Hooooo boy, do I ever! I just can't get enough! ...You think it was the right thing to do, though? Coming here without that lass, Naho? She ain't gonna be too pleased! She'll be all like "Why do you guys always do the fun stuff without me?!", see?" The other man laughed softly, giving his agreement to the statement. "Heh... That sounds about right. But this is different from our previous excursions. I can't justify putting her in danger like this."

Taguchi went on with taping the surroundings as they talked, including floorboards, walls, himself occasionally, his boss and many other things along the way. "Ehh, very true, but she's sure not gonna see it that way. Is that the real deal?" He went on blabbering, while carefully filming on. "It... looks that way.." The other man, the stranger agreed. Walking on, the boy with the camera stopped once again.

He stopped by a corpse, poking it with his foot. "A dead body... An actual dead body! This is bad... Really, really bad. We gotta get out of here! Look at her uniform. It's from our era! It's...new! I'm sure this place accounts for a whole bunch of missing children reports... And here they are, just rotting away! Aaaahh, what king of hell have we stumbled into?!" He cried, stepping away.

Not like they could particularly blame him either. "You're right. We're in danger here." The man knelt beside the corpse, looking at the rotting body. "Glad we're in agreement. Now, you said something about a way out, right?!" The clearly scared cameraman asked, the camera titling slightly. "Ah, yes... The way out... I forgot I never went through that with you. It's-"

"AAAAAGHH!"

"What's wrong?"

"I heard a voice... a child's voice! Children's voices!"

"Seriously?!"

"Listen! Listen! Can't you hear them?! Where the hell are they coming from?!"

"Calm down. I'm listening, but I can't hear anything. How many voices are there? Are they boys? Girls?" The man asked, approaching his co-worker with anxiety expressed, as well as mild curiosity. "Aaaaaaa-aaaaaa-aaaaaaaaahhhhhh... Mr. Kibiki! Mr. Kibiki! There was something there... right there! Just seconds ago!" He screamed, his hand visible pointing towards the end of the corridor. "Where?!"

Nothing was there. Or well, at least they couldn't see anything. "There! Right over there! Ahh! Hey, you! Wait! Stop! Hold u- ULGH!" The boy began to head in the direction hurriedly, scattering over. "Are you all right?!" Kibiki asked behind him, following closely. His footsteps were ringing from behind. "Oof... I'm really sorry. I stepped on something and... the camera! Is it all right?!" Taguchi asked, as his boss picked the item up.

As Kibiki picked up the camera to inspect it, the younger boy started ahead. "...? UUWWAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHH! AAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAAAAHAAAHAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHH!" He screamed, out of view, running off. "Taguchi! Where are you going?! Dammit, the tape's almost full. Where'd he put our blanks?!" And so, the video ended there.

Seiko blinked at the screen, making sure it's final was met. "THE END!" She screamed, falling back. "I wonder what this "way out" might be..." Naomi wondered aloud, turning to face her friend who sat with now a bored expression, looking around the office. "Well, what it sounds like! But the Kibiki guy did say they have blanks, so there should be followups. Then maybe there's more detail? Plus, we can always find it when we reunite with Yuka."

The short-haired girl began to head for the doors. "Yeah... Sounds like a plan to me. All right! For now, let's just see about getting to that second building..." She agreed, while Seiko went off to the camera and tried to lift it off. Without even budging, she huffed. "The camera's staying put. I can't lift it. It's like kinda stuck... to the TV..." She said, matter-of-factly. "Not exactly ideal, since it means we'll have to come back here to watch the next tape..." The other girl thought aloud.

There was nothing of interest left in the Custodian's Office, so the two disregarded it and headed out. Seiko stopped right after their exit. "Huh?" Naomi led her to a pit between the other side of the school, dividing it up onto two sides. "Wh-What... What's going on...? The school's completely changed!" She exclaimed in surprise. Seiko chuckled, looking down the pit. "Guess they weren't only earthquakes, were they not?"

With a soft snicker, the girl nodded. "Yeah. It's like we were feeling the building expand and contract around us... again." She sighed, and let Seiko lead them ahead. "Come on! Gotta hurry!" She chirped, Naomi taking a grip on her hand to stop her. "Wait up, Seiko..." She mumbled, and the girl looked back at her with interest. "Hmm?" She asked, looking around to see if anything was happening. "You've got splinters all over your back..." Slowly, Naomi began to bursh them off.

* * *

Kneeling beside a broken sink, Yuka pushed the pair of soaked underwear further down the damaged pipe until it was no longer visible. "Maybe I can hide them under here..." She murmured to herself, shaking slightly. "Oooogh... I can feel air on my... nnnnng... It feels so weird..." She cried, shaking her head in a try to get rid of those kind of thoughts. Pulling herself up, she balanced herself on the sink. "But I can't wear them wet like that... It's gross!"

With a small whine, she began to slowly head for the restroom doors, afraid still that someone might try once again to terrorize her. For a few moments, the ground shook, more gently than many times before. "Ungh... It's been nothing but earthquakes since we got here... I hope the school doesn't fall apart..." Exiting the bathroom, the young girl began to head towards the stairs. "Big brother! Biiiiig Brooottheeeeerr!" She screamed, unlucky to find him so far.

Sobbing softly, she went off onto the staircase, with no knowledge a certain spirit in red garments followed eagerly...

* * *

Both Yoshiki and Ayumi walked off towards where they saw one of the pits, dividing the school into two halves. On the other side, they made out two figures, and Ayumi ran ahead, shaking her hands wildly in the air. "Isn't that...?!" She screamed to the two girls on the other side. "Seiko? It's Seiko and Nakashima!" Since Seiko insisted on being called by her first name, not Shinohara, Yoshiki put up with her wish.

Despite... despite the term being meant for girlfriends, family and other close people to you. "Yeah! I guess the closed spaces really have started to break down! Come on!" Ayumi urged him, pulling him on to the very edge of the place, where he let her take him. "Right behind you. Seikooo! Nakashimaaa!" He yelled across the pit, taking the attention of both the girls.

Squealing quite loudly in joy, Seiko rushed over to the edge as well, ignoring the pain of splinters digging out of her skin abruptly. "Kishinuma! Shinozaki! You're alright!" She called over to them, waving in glee.

Naomi approached behind her, not quite as energetically, but clearly pleased. "Class rep! Oh, thank God! I was hoping we'd run into you!" She called over to the blue-haired girl, offering a wide smile. "Me too. I was beginning to wonder what I'd do without you guys!" The class rep responded brightly. "Kishinumaaaaaa...!" Seiko called to the teen boy, winking.

The bleach blonde laughed at her joking manner, nodding. "Heh... Pretty sorry lot we've drawn, eh?" He called over, and Seiko laughed. "Aye! Aye!"

* * *

A lot of information was exchanged between the two pairs, both chatting away on what they saw or heard from each other. "No... God, poor Suzumoto..." Naomi wailed lowly, running a hand through her hair. Yoshiki seemed even more devastated, eyes crystallizing, though he didn't cry or nothing of that sort. "And Satoshi..." Naomi gave a sob, looking away.

Seiko wrapped her arms around Naomi comfortingly. "And he was here only moments ago... With us... Such a loss..." She admitted, and Ayumi straightened up, closing her eyes to recollect herself. "A-At any rate... let's make sure we don't lose anyone else. In fact, consider it an order from your class rep." She told them, determination shining through her voice. "Shinozaki...?" Seiko asked.

Ignoring the girl, Ayumi looked at the three. "We're going to find Ms. Shishido, Morishige and Yuka... and get the hell out of here together!" Seiko bounced away from her friend and jumped up and down. "YUP! YUP!" She cheered, fistpumping the air. "Remember, the murderer is Sachiko. If you run into her, be very careful. Based on what we've been told by Naho and Yuki... if we can get Sachiko to express remorse for her actions... then the three victims she killed will be appeased... the field around this school building will be lifted... and we should, theoretically, be able to get out of here and go home." She told them.

Shinohara calmed down, looking at Ayumi with a little confusion. "Sachiko's that one in red, right? How will we make her feel remorse? We can't force her or anything." Naomi nodded in agreement, rubbing away tears. "That's the question."Ayumi frowned at the couple. "Well, what about you two? What about that 'way out' you mentioned?"

Naomi looked at her feet awkwardly. "Not a lot, unfortunately. The reporter talked about some specific means of getting home...but he was cut off before he could explain it. He was looking for a blank tape, though, when it ended. So there's probably a continuation somewhere. Look for a label that says, 'Kibiki Research Data.'" She explained. Ayumi looked surprised for a moment. "Did you say... Kibiki?!"

Confused, Naomi nodded. "Yes, that's right. If we can figure out what sort of method he had in mind for getting out of here, we won't have to get mixed up with ghosts and curses anymore. It seems like it'd be a lot simpler than... how did you put it? Appeasing the spirits?" She inquired, rocking lightly on her feet in thought. "The problem with that is, it doesn't really fix anything."

Ayumi, with her knowledge on spiritual worlds, was allowed to explain further. "Escaping by putting the spirits to rest... That's the method Naho explained to me. And I don't think it's the same thing as Kibiki's "way out." I'm guessing Naho wants us to put a stop to this once and for all... to keep this curse from spreading any farther. If we leave things the way they are, and just escape with our lives like you're suggesting... then countless innocent children are going to get pulled in here for God knows how many years to come, and they're all going to die horribly!"

Naomi looked with disbelief, but a little agreement, up at her class rep. "That may be true, but we're just high school students! How can you possibly expect us to set things right?!" She asked, asking herself continuously how they might get to it. "There has to be a way to make Sachiko atone for her sins. There just has to be! And we're going to look for it! God, how can you just decide right off the bat that this plan has no chance of succeeding?!"

A hurt expression, Ayumi looked down the pit to focus somewhere else. "Is it because I'm the one suggesting it?" She asked, knowingly triggering guilt in Naomi. She knew that she disliked her, but wouldn't admit it... Only to put on the best image possible. "What?! No! Of course not!" Naomi quickly stepped up closer as it was possible.

Knowing the tension between the two, Seiko stepped forth. "Come on, guys, we have to work together! How about me and Naomi here search up more on Kibiki's way out, and you on appeasing the spirits, as well as vice versa. A war on two fronts, kay? And on the way, we can search for Yuka. And you can search for Ms. Yui?"

"Sounds good." Kishinuma joined in again.


	27. Chapter 27

Hating fights, Seiko nodded at Kishinuma's words, a natural grin planted on her features as she gazed at the couple ahead. "And then we can meet back here when we get everything over with. Or at least some parts, right?" She added, rolling back her shoulders. "Ah, Shino- Seiko, I got somethin' for ya." Yoshiki told her, passing over the marble statue they earlier earned from Yuki.

Reaching over the pit, Seiko took a good grip on the statue and quickly pulled it over, hugging the heavy item on her chest, like it was a little child. "Thank ya! It's lovely! Marble, is it not?" She chirped, looking up at the bleach blonde boy. "What is it exactly?" She asked, ruining her little speech about how she seemed to immediately know everything about the marble thing.

Examining it again, Yoshiki only shrugged. "Dunno what that is, but that ghost girl we made friends with told us to pass it over to you." He shrugged, his reply pretty honest. Watching the exchange, Ayumi turned around to leave. That was all, was it not? "Come on. We should hurry if we want to find the others." She mumbled, stopped by Naomi.

The short-haired brunette offered a kindly smile. "Class rep? Take care, okay?" She called after her, and Ayumi stopped. "Nakashima... Y-You too. And good luck. You'll probably need it." Ayumi told her in response, speaking a little bitterly at the beginning, and therefore trying to cover it with the last sentences she spoke. "... Okay..." Naomi promised, preparing to leave, seeing that the class rep had already walked away, chased by Yoshiki hot on her heels.

"Hey! Shinozaki! Hey." He kept calling after her until she faced him, where he stopped. "What is it?" She asked loudly, demanding the answer. "Don't think you look discouraged enough yet. Why don't you scowl some more?" He bit on his lip after saying that, withdrawing the hostility from his voice. With a gasp, the girl blushed, looking away. He was right. She shouldn't have been so rude.

Then again, her crush just died! Was she supposed to be happy about it? "Nakashima's student ID... I forgot to give it back... And the paper doll scrap... What if it's important?" She sighed miserably, guilt heating in the pit of her stomach.

The boy smiled idly. "There's still time for that. No hurry. Actually, things are starting to look up! No time to mope now." He tried to cheer her up, failing in doing so for the moment. "I just let my personal feelings cloud my judgement, and because of that spoke harshly to my own classmate for no reason at all! And I'm the class rep!" She yelped, shaking her head in misery.

Rolling his eyes, Yoshiki took a hold on her shoulder, making her finally look up. "Not here you aren't. In this place, you're just Ayumi Shinozaki. Plus, you were just being honest. In your shoes, I would do the very same damn thing." He told her with certainty, making her nod slowly. "Seriously?!" She asked in sudden joy, a large weight lifted off her shoulders.

With a little hesitation, he nodded. "Um... Maybe." He chuckled, making her smile up at him gratefully. "That actually makes me feel better. Thanks." It did? Wow. He never thought that would help anyone, but was glad to find it otherwise. "Dontcha mention it." He nodded at her. "On the other matter, if we did track down Sachiko, I don't know how we could elicit remorse from her. Let's just try to find Ms. Yui. And then we can get the hell out of here. Together."

* * *

It had been a while since they began searching for Yuka, wandering aimlessly around different halls in hopes of finding the youthful girl. Finally, the path to the other building reopened, giving them free access to it. "Oh my... Another whole building... It's still... Terrifying..." Naomi murmured from behind.

Unlike Naomi, Seiko didn't feel the fear, until it was mentioned... "Oh, um... You don't have to go along. I'll take a quick peek around. If you're scared?" She offered. "No! I-I'll be okay..." Naomi protested, and Seiko smiled at her, nodding. "If you say so. We'll manage, just about as long as we keep together." She told her, taking her hand and pulling her towards the opposing doorway.

Walking behind, the duo entered. "Come on, we'll find Yuka. She should be somewhere here..." Naomi agreed, walking ahead. On the left hand side, there was a fallen cabinet, blocking the way. A note was clipped to the wall a little way further from the door. "The darkening has already began." Seiko read, looking over at her friend. Did that mean...

No.

They'll be fine. She'll be fine, and Naomi will be fine.

With nothing else in the entranceway, the couple began to head to the west, since the other side was blocked. "AAAAGGHHHH!" Seiko screamed, covering her mouth with her hands upon entering. Naomi following, she followed, staring at the body that was sprawled ahead. It's internal organs were stretched a short distance away. Whoever had done this, clearly enjoyed every second of the agony of the poor victim. "He looked like he was just killed! Like, JUST killed..."

Kneeling down beside the body, Seiko took the poor boy's name tag. "Kensuke Kurosaki. Byakudan Senior High." The girl read, folding the corpse's hands together on his chest, with the ID between them, so he looked like he was asleep, minus the blood. "Hey, Seiko, look!" Naomi called from behind, picking something up. In her hands she held a pair of white and yellow shoes.

Looking up, the brunette blinked at the pair. "Huh...? W-Wai-... Are those... Yuka's?" She mumbled, fear creeping into her eyes. "Seiko..." Naomi murmured, hoping that, for once, her friend wasn't right. "I saw her, Naomi! I saw her when she came into the classroom! She was... she was wearing those... Naomi!" The girl sobbed softly. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED HERE!"

* * *

"Owwie!"

The girl scrambled up to her feet again, looking around. She was... in some hallway, she couldn't tell where. The floorboards were reddish brown, paint peeling off the walls, making the building look more fragile than any other. Slowly, Yuka began to step ahead. She had to find her big brother. She sighed, looking down at her blue smock dressing.

It was stained crimson in numerous places, and she could see one of the toes through a hole in her socks. Which reminded her... "Uh... I'm so bloody! And... Where are my shoes?" She mumbled. "Aren't you just precious!" A voice sounded from close by, somewhere ahead, making the girl instantly snap her attention up.

Giving a low scream of surprise, the young girl took a few step backs. A ghostly figure of a tiny girl walked over, her skin a blue hue. She was snickering slightly. An expression made out of a friendly smile, she crossed her hands behind her back, looking down at the ghost. "Hel-Hello! Who... are you? Are... you the one that saved me, earlier? When I was running from... that nasty man?"

Referring to Kizami as only a "nasty" man was kind of unacceptable. He was a sociopath, crazy and murderous... Dangerous... And the ghost of the girl was nothing better. She began cackling at her, purring something. "You're so cute, I could mess you right up...!" The girls shied away in fear. "Huh?" She muttered, ready to make a run for it, if necessary. "Will you listen to what I have to say?" The ghost then asked.

Yuka nodded softly.

"Yeah, sure! I can do that. I mean... I'm mostly scared of ghosts, but you somehow don't seem scary to me!" She called out in glee, and the ghost burst out laughing as a reaction. "Pfft... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Who do you think you're talking to, little girl ? ! I'll wring your damn neck only to watch you squirm ! !" And like that, the ghost began to chase after the girl, causing her to scream at the top of her lungs, blindly searching for an escape route, hoping for safety.

* * *

_Author's Note: _Shorter chapter for a longer story of Naiko in the next one c:


	28. Chapter 28

"Rest in peace, Kurosaki." Seiko murmured to the corpse, heading west, as their only option. Upon entering the stairwell, it was clear blood was almost everywhere. It spread around the floors the most. Like... Someone had deliberately aimed to injure themselves. Around the bloodied mess lay a cellphone, apparently thrown from some distance.

The girl walked over, lifting it up. "What's this? Looks like Morishige's cellphone!" She called out to Naomi, opening the flap. He probably wouldn't mind if they took a peek, right? He might want it back later, though. He didn't have to know though, and if somehow he found out about them looking, he wasn't like a guy to have something to hide, right? "'Video saved to memory'. What did he record?"

Naomi now stood beside Seiko, as she fumbled with the bloodied keys to open the file saved previously. "Hey! Seik-"

Ignoring the protests, Seiko had already turned the video on. "... Aaaaaaaa-aaaaahh... YAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH! AAAAAAHAAAAHHHHH... HHAAAAAAAHHHAAA... YAAAAAGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!" For a few minutes, the screams continued, sounding a little like... laughter? Only much louder, and far more moving. "GAAAHHAAHH!" A slam followed, but the screen remained black. "AHHHHAAAHHHAA!" Another slam.

And another. "AAAAAALLLLLLGGAAAHHHAAAAAAAHHHAAAAAHHHAAAAA! MAYU! MAAAAYUUUU!" The calls, easily interpreted to be Morishige's, were followed firmly by frantic laughter, piercing the ears. "AHHHAAAHHHAAA! AHAHHHHHAAAAAHHHHAAA!" Then a final slam, steps, and a thud fainted in the distance. Seiko remained silent, staring at the phone in her hand. "No! Please! No more of this!" She screamed, and Seiko closed the flap, slipping it into her pocket.

As a sign of respect for their now deceased friend, the girl slipped it into her pocket, so that when they got out, they'll still be able to honor their memory. Not to mention, his parents will most likely want it back. The couple, in their grief, began to head upstairs. That's another friend gone. There was nothing up at the very top apart from a pair of locked doors.

Instead, they went to the second floor. Unable to enter the girl's lavatory up the level, the two went off to the east. A note was hanging on the wall, with large spaces between each letter, sometimes as big as around six spaces. Together, they read 'Believe the girl'. Walking up the way, there was a closed corridor, with a note clipped along. "My friend was killed in this hallway. These green globs are lethal. I've sealed them to ensure nobody else dies a pointless death here." For the way was gone, the two friends went down the way.

There awaited an art classroom. Both doors were closed firmly, not letting anyone trespass. Still, there was one classroom open: The Music class. Nothing awaited there, however, apart from a corpse and the year of the piano above being donated. The two, somehow, managed to loop around the school building. Their way was blocked by a cabinet, forcing them to go back round again.

Between the shoe shelves echoed a few sobs, and Seiko rushed to the aid of whoever it was, not comprehending with the luck of their's. "YUKAAAAAA!" She screamed, going ahead and sprinting to hug the girl, up on her feet again. Naomi smiled, watching the two from a certain distance. "Oh, thank God! You're alright! Are you hurt?!"

The little girl opened her eyes, smiling slightly at the girl that held her closely to her chest, almost protectively. Like her big brother did. "You must have been so scared by yourself... Are you okay?" Without a warning, the girl began to sob violently. "Shinohara! Nakshima! I-I... I was so scared..." The girl sobbed, using a tiny hand to clean her cheeks. "Come on, Yuka, we should go, yeah?" Seiko murmured to the girl.

Picking her up, the young girl nodded cheerfully. She began to dust off her dress, something slipping from under, collapsing close by. "Huh?" Seiko looked down at what may be laying on the ground. Yuka looked down confused, beginning to check whether she might be carrying something else. "Dropped something there. Is that a tape?" The brunette asked, picking the item up. "Um... I don't know. What's that?" The girl asked. "When did you get it?"

Seiko went on dwelling out of wonder. "I really don't know. I've never seen that before." Yuka admitted with a soft sigh, looking down at her bare feet. Naomi walked up and quietly passed her over her shoes, smiling. "Hey, Naomi, doesn't this look like...?" Seiko asked, looking at the mini tape. "Yeah, no doubt about it. The label says, 'Kibiki Research Data 2.' It's the followup... This might be our ticket out of here!" Yuka began pulling her shoes on.

They found it! Their way of escape... They got it! Seiko grinned, looking down at Yuka. "Ready to leave little one? We're real close to getting out!" She slid the tape into her pocket, holding out her hand for the girl to hold. Taking Naomi's eyes in her free one, the three began to head out to the other building, where they could watch the followup.

As they headed for the Custodian's Office, they managed to find some crank. Going by, they pulled it's lever, which, unknown to them, eased Yoshiki's and Ayumi's way over to them. Soon, all five could work together.

Due to choice, they had to travel by Mayu's corpse, passing another, new one. It was Tohko Kirisaki, from the same school as the Kurosaki guy in the other building. Walking ahead, they found an inaccessible crank, and a note close by. "Even if you're feeling trapped, remember, tomorrow is forged by yesterday and today, and all can flow in perfect harmony. EXPEL ALL CLOSET TRESPASSERS!"

The only thing left on the floor was some hallway, at the end bearing a door with two pedestals on it. Having no clue what to do with those, the group began to head downstairs, and through a lengthy hallway into the Custodian's Office.

* * *

After moving on, Ayumi and Yoshiki began to head down the hall, finding a note close by, only at the end of the corridor. "Strange but True: Stories of the Occult. Chasing Down the Hidden Past of the Cursed School Building. - part 3. By Kou have taken a truly frightful turn, dear readers! I stand now at the brink of a new age for the occult world. Nothing will ever be the same again. I wonder if it will even be possible to convey in words the significance of where I'm standing at this very moment...

"Prepare yourselves for a report unlike any other, for I am presently within the accursed school building - inside Heavenly Host Elementary! And it's all thanks to my highly skilled protege, Naho Seanoki. Many of you know the name. She has the ability to commune with spirits, and it's through these connections that a way has been devised - A means of accessing this sacred ground.

"Together with my faithful cameraman, Taguchi, I have made use of this method to see these cursed halls with my own eyes. I have set foot into a school building that should no longer exist...a forbidden land of the dead... In addition to this article, Taguchi and I will also be capturing ample video footage. We have no clear plan of attack, so we'll simply explore and record.

"What will become of us in these dilapidated halls? What secrets will we uncover? Will we be able to learn the truth of what happened here?

"It may seem odd in such macabre surroundings, but I can't help feeling excited about what awaits us. Surely, dear readers, you can relate! I sincerely hope you will be anticipating my next installment with bated breath. For now, however, I must put down my pen. There is work to be done. I must gather evidence of this remarkable excursion, for soon I shall be regarded as a living witness to the dead!" The piece read, and Ayumi held it closely to her face for a moment.

Simply thinking. "Naho's mentor, the writer of the occult... Kou Kibiki. Investigative reporter - inasmuch as you can call someone that at a spook mag, anyway. Guess he's in here somewhere too... Don't want to speak ill of him, but he always seemed to think of Naho as his cash cow. He obviously came here solely to get his hands on a big scoop. That man would wake the dead, if he could write about it afterward..." She pouted, looking over at her partner.

With a look of deep thought, she went on. "Kibiki's choice of words in this article suggests he came here of his own volition. Naho made it sound the same way for her, too. Then there's that first blue ghost we spoke with. He said we were all trapped here by the curse of the children... But the little girl... Yuki... She said she wasn't responsible. So that leaves one possible explanation. We're here, because... we messed up the Sachiko Ever After charm."

The girl looked in distress now. This was her fault! If she hadn't suggested doing the charm, then none of this would be happening. Mayu that it was meant for would still be alive. "The main reason we're put through this hell, is because we angered Sachiko! If only... I could have paid more attention to Naho's blog entry. Then we wouldn't be here! If only... if only we'd performed the charm correctly..."

She was sobbing now, doubling over, letting the page flatter back to the floor. "Shinozaki..." Yoshiki looked at her sadly, about to add something else. "I... I-I... I just thought... we would be friends forever! I never thought something like... that would bring this hell on us, if we failed?! Anyway, what kind of charm holds such a risk?! I've dealt with stuff like this for a long time, and even though... I would have never..."

The sobs echoed off the walls as the girl went on crying, the boy next to her rubbing her back. "Hey, don't beat yourself up, Shinozaki. How could you know? It came off from the left field. None of us would have known!" He muttered, aiming to make her feel better.

Trying, yet not fully succeeding. "You... you were supposed to be my friends... I'm so sorry... Suzumoto... Mochida... I'm sorry! It's all my fault! I... It's all because of me..." Eventually, Yoshiki could calm her down enough for them to continue. Only a few steps off was a large doorway covered with protective charms. There were from every religion, every possible pagan belief. It was closed, and wouldn't budge.

With nothing else left to explore, they moved down the hall. At the end of the hall, there was an entranceway. At the left side of their own, there was a note clipped to the wall, but... It sounded familiar. As they moved ahead, they fell upon a notebook. It was pink in color with many stickers on the cover. "I would recognize the signature anywhere! This is Naho's!" Ayumi cried out, picking the diary up.

Out of curiosity, she flipped it open, looking at Yoshiki apologetically. "It reads 'Findings'. I don't want to seem nosy, or anything... But I'm really curious!" Opening the book, it was little of a surprise to find it rather a three-ring binder. The few papers left inside were coated in blood. They were covered with hastily written sentences, but there was room for many more.

The way it was written could be easily compared with the style of Kibiki's. "Examination of Sacred Spaces - File 0. 'Ghost Therapy - Heart Surgery Ward' (Investigation pending). "Method of ingress: Obtained. (Requires two or more participants.) Method of egress: Obtained. (Will need to gather more information and plan very carefully, but it can be done.)

"Encountered fierce spiritual resistance while simply researching the Shinozaki estate. Right side of body paralyzed. Left eardrum ringing. Orbs visible in photographs. Influence confirmed. Severe dizziness, nausea and bloody BM experienced. Symptoms persist for weeks. Significant danger is clearly present. Next investigation will place others at risk. May be best to leave Mr. Kibiki behind." Ayumi read out, pausing every so often to read the clumsy script.

Moving on from the part, Ayumi looked at the blood covered bottom of the page, before going on. "Seems he returned empty-handed again today. How many times has that happened with this publisher? He writes such interesting pieces, but never receives due credit. They're too daft. They don't appreciate him. Poor guy can't catch a break... But all that will change once his next serial is published. I'll do anything in my power to help him get the recognition he deserves. ...Naho would frequently post these "Examinations of Sacred Spaces" on her blog."

It was quite obvious Ayumi was trying to remember some of them, struggling with doing so. "This must be some of the data she collected for that. Never thought I'd be reading her next update like this, though... I wish I could've met her under normal circumstances and... made friends with her, or something...and had her pass me this book so I could read over the next updates with her blessing, instead of just... finding it..."


	29. Author's Note

This will be used only for the sake of putting up this notice. I apologize for the lack of updates but my life's been kinda busy lately. Before the Halloween break, I need to be tested in each subject, and the preparation for them tests take time. I still have a few to do, and the dates are chasing me pretty well. Since we're going to be off school soon, too, our teachers decided to give us some extra work.

I have an important art piece to complete, which I personally find really difficult, meaning I have to spend a little more of a while at it. Last weekend we went over to my aunt's, I've had a price-giving on Friday, etc. I'm really sorry for the lack of updates, but seeing I'll have more time to spend on this next week, I'll try to post then (:


End file.
